MRI contrast agent Omniscan risky to kidney patients

Henrik Thomsen, Europe’s leading radiologists, warned his colleagues few years back about Nephrogenic Systemic Fibrosis (NSF), which he labelled a medical nightmare. In 2006, NSF was discovered by the radiologist to have a link to Omniscan, a form of contrast agent given to patients prior to MRI scan. As counter action, GE Healthcare, manufacturer of Omniscan and subsidiary of General Electric, had filed a libel case against Thomsen.

NSF is a rare and fatal disease which causes the skin to swell, tighten and thicken. Thomsen revealed the findings to his colleagues based on 20 kidney patients he treated, who subsequently contracted the disease at the hospital. It was reported that most of the patients are now confined to wheelchairs and one patient already died.

Early in 2006, he was informed that every kidney patient, who was diagnosed with NSF, had been given with Omniscan contrast agent for MRI scan. Eventually, Thomsen and his colleagues had alerted hospital authorities and reviewed all identified NSF cases.

Though Thomsen could not prove the NSF allegation against the gadolinium-based contrast agent, he resolved not to use the drug for kidney patients again. As a result, GE filed a libel suit against Thomsen. The company has so far spent £380,000 on the case.

In related news, the Danish Medicines Agency had tied Omniscan to at least 25 NSF-related cases in May 2006 alone. Several patients had already filed insurance claims with the Danish government’s insurance agency. One patient had allegedly died from the side effects of Omniscan, concluded the insurance agency.