Beware risk of adverse events associated with GBCAs

Risks associated with gadolinium-based contrast agents (GBCAs) differ by drug, and clinicians would do well to educate themselves about these differences, according to research published October 14 in Expert Opinion on Drug Safety.To make the situation more complicated, not all possible adverse events from GBCAs are noted in drug packaging, wrote a team led by Lu Wang, PhD, of Yantai Yuhuangding Hospital in Yantai, China."Some adverse events [noted] in this study were not mentioned in the package inserts, which need more attention and research to ensure the clinical safety," the group explained.The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved the first GBCA in 1998, and ever since, this class of drugs has been used with MRI to diagnose disease. GBCAs are categorized as either macrocyclic or linear; macrocyclic agents are considered more stable. Adverse drug reactions to GBCAs have been reported in recent years, ranging from allergic responses, nephrogenic systemic fibrosis, kidney injury, and gadolinium deposits, the team noted.Wang and colleagues sought to investigate the "risk signals" of various GBCAs (that is, information that points to risk of adverse effects from the agent). They investigated these indicators prompted by the following four GBCAs between 2004 and 2022, using the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's (FDA) Adverse Event Reporting System:Gadopentetate dimeglumine (Gd-DTPA) -- 6,813 casesGadobenate dimeglumine (Gd-BOPTA) -- 3,142 casesGadoteridol (Gd-HP-D...

Source: AuntMinnie.com Headlines - October 17, 2023 Category: Radiology Authors: Kate Madden Yee Tags: Clinical News MRI Source Type: news