A new  study indicates that some kidney patients who undergo hemodialysis  following exposure to gadolinium contrast dyes during an MRI may be at less risk of developing nephrogenic systemic fibrosis (NSF). The study, conducted by researchers at Weill Medical College of Cornell University and Columbia University’s College of Physicians and Surgeons in New York, was recently published in the journal “Radiology”.

NSF is debilitating, and sometimes fatal disease, that affects people with pre-existing kidney diseases who have undergone MRI studies that involve gadolinium contrast dyes. There is currently no cure for NSF and no one understands its specific cause. The disorder is characterized  by high blood pressure, burning, itching, swelling and hardening of the skin. Other symptoms include red or dark patches on the skin; pain deep in the hip bones or ribs and muscle weakness. NSF can progress to the point of causing severe stiffness in joints, and it can lead to death. (more…)

A Tennesee woman with Nephrogenic Systemic Fibrosis (NSF) has won a battle with her insurance company.  After two years of litigation, a judge has ordered TennCare to pay for a treatment that might save her life.  TennCare is Tennessee’s Medicaid managed care program that provides health coverage for low-income children, pregnant women and disabled Tennesseans. TennCare had previously refused to cover the treatment - known as extracorporeal photopheresis - for Jeanie Deason because it was considered experimental.

NSF is a devastating condition that affects people with pre-existing kidney problems who have been exposed to gadolinium contrast dyes that are used  in MRI procedures. There is currently no cure for NSF and no one understands its specific cause. The disorder is characterized  by high blood pressure, burning, itching, swelling and hardening of the skin. Other symptoms include red or dark patches on the skin; pain deep in the hip bones or ribs and muscle weakness. NSF can progress to the point of causing severe stiffness in joints, and it can lead to death. (more…)

A  Minnesota woman who claims she developed Nephrogenic Systemic Fibrosis (NSF) after receiving Magnevist during an MRI procedure is suing the maker of the gadolinium contrast dye.  The plaintiff in the Magnevist lawsuit is represented by the law firm of Parker Waichman Alonso LLP.

NSF is a devastating condition that affects people with pre-existing kidney problems. There is currently no cure for NSF and no one understands its specific cause. The disorder is characterized  by high blood pressure, burning, itching, swelling and hardening of the skin. Other symptoms include red or dark patches on the skin; pain deep in the hip bones or ribs and muscle weakness. NSF can progress to the point of causing severe stiffness in joints, and it can lead to death. (more…)

General Electric Company has been named in a lawsuit over its Omniscan gadolinium contrast dye.   The lawsuit alleges that Omniscan caused a Philadelphia man to develop Nephrogenic Systemic Fibrosis (NSF), a debilitating and often fatal disease. The plaintiff in the Omniscan lawsuit is represented by the law firm of Parker Waichman Alonso LLP.

NSF is a devastating condition that affects people with pre-existing kidney problems. There is currently no cure for NSF and no one understands its specific cause. However, the evidence that gadolinium contrast agents play a role in its development is fast becoming irrefutable. Dutch scientists made the first connection between NSF and gadolinium in 2006. Since then, researchers at Yale University have reported that 95-percent of those with NSF had undergone a Magnetic Imaging Resonance (MRI) procedure that involved a gadolinium contrast dye two to three months before their symptoms appeared. Researchers at Massachusetts General Hospital also have found that kidney patients who had undergone MRIs with gadolinium  contrast dyes were 10 times more likely to develop NSF than patient who had not been exposed to such agents. (more…)

Kidney patients need to know that MRI procedures that involve the use of gadolinium contrast dyes could put them at risk of developing Nephrogenic Systemic Fibrosis (NSF). Unfortunately, there are no alternatives for gadolinium contrast dyes available at this time, and sometime such an MRI is truly necessary. For that reason, doctors must take added precautions to lessen the chance that kidney patients undergoing MRI with gadolinium contrast dyes develop NSF

NSF is a debilitating disease that was first seen in patients in 1997, and it wasn’t mentioned in medical literature until 2000. NSF leads to excessive formation of connective tissue in the skin and internal organs. It is characterized by high blood pressure, burning, itching, swelling and hardening of the skin. Other symptoms include red or dark patches on the skin; pain deep in the hip bones or ribs and muscle weakness. NSF can progress to the point of causing severe stiffness in joints, and it can lead to death. (more…)

Another Nephrogenic Systemic Fibrosis (NSF) study has tied the debilitating condition to Gadolinium contrast agents used in Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI).  This latest NSF research was conducted by the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), which examined a cluster of NSF patients at one unidentified St. Louis Missouri Hospital.  The CDC found that the exposure to Gadolinium contrast dyes during MRI was independently associated with the development of NSF.

NSF (sometimes called Nephrogenic Fibrosing Dermopathy or NFD) was first seen in patients in 1997, and it wasn’t mentioned in medical literature until 2000. NSF leads to excessive formation of connective tissue in the skin and internal organs. It is characterized by high blood pressure, burning, itching, swelling and hardening of the skin. Other symptoms include red or dark patches on the skin; pain deep in the hip bones or ribs and muscle weakness. NSF can progress to the point of causing severe stiffness in joints, and it can lead to death. (more…)

NSF (Nephrogenic Systemic Fibrosis), sometimes called NFD (Nephrogenic Fibrosing Dermopathy) is a rare disease that so far has affected only people with pre-existing kidney problems.  In 2006, researchers discovered a direct association between NSF and the use of Gadolinium MRI contrast dyes. Since that initial discovery, several other studies have reinforced the link between NSF and Gadolinium MRI contrast dyes.  In 2006, the Food & Drug Administration (FDA) first warned doctors of this Gadolinium side effect.  Then, in 2007 the FDA ordered the manufactures of Gadolinium contrast dyes to add a black box warning – the strictest type of FDA warning — to their product labels advising of the risk of NSF to people with kidney problems.

NSF was first seen in patients in 1997, and it wasn’t mentioned in medical literature until 2000. NSF leads to excessive formation of connective tissue in the skin and internal organs. It is characterized by high blood pressure, burning, itching, swelling and hardening of the skin. Other symptoms include red or dark patches on the skin; pain deep in the hip bones or ribs and muscle weakness. NSF can progress to the point of causing severe stiffness in joints, and it can lead to death.

(more…)