Alternative MRI contrast agent performs well in NIH study

[D.ap]

“NIH-supported researchers at Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) are studying an alternative to the contrast agents currently used for magnetic resonance imaging. In a recent study, they showed that the experimental alternative, a manganese-based compound, performs as well as approved contrast agents. Their study appeared online Nov. 15, 2017, in Radiology.

MRI procedure photoSource: iStock
Magnetic resonance (MR) images are taken so that a clinician can view various tissues inside the body. Often, they are taken without a contrast-enhancing agent, but four in ten MR procedures require injection of a contrast agent to view anatomical structures and indications of disease or injury.

All currently approved contrast agents contain the chemical element gadolinium, which is toxic in its free form. To make gadolinium safe for use in humans, it is tightly held by a binding agent, or chelator, to prevent the metal from depositing in the body. However, some recent studies have raised concerns that not all the gadolinium injected for the scan is eliminated from the body, and that traces of gadolinium left in tissues may cause harm in the long term. Further, some patients with impaired kidney function may be adversely affected by gadolinium-based contrast, so this group of patients cannot get the imaging scans that would help their doctors in treating them. “



https://www.nibib.nih.gov/news-events/n ... -nih-study