MRI – Magnetic Resonance Insanity: Toxic Gadolinium

“My highest priority is daily pain and the twisting/squeezing tightness of craniofacial tendons and ligaments. The skin on my scalp feels like an open, gaping wound at the slightest touch. The neuropathy and not having a sense of where my arms and hands are, is just as painful.”

These horrific statements are from a respondent to a survey conducted in 2014 of patients that underwent anywhere from 1 to 8 Magnetic Resonance Imaging tests using a now-controversial intravenous Gadolinium-Based Contrast Agent (GBCA) to enhance images of abnormal tissue. GBCAs are generally thought to be safe to use; however, retention of gadolinium in fat, bone, and brain tissue is known to have serious consequences.

Researchers have estimated that approximately 1% (15 mg) of the 1.5 grams of injected gadolinium from each dose of contrast (0.1 mmol/kg body weight) may be released from the contrast agent and deposited in the bones of GBCA exposed patients including those with normal kidney function.

Gadolinium is neurotoxic. It inhibits mitochondrial function and induces oxidative stress. The Blood-Brain Barrier is easily disrupted, and this is why gadolinium is deposited in brain tumors and brain lesions such as those seen in Multiple Sclerosis.

Symptoms of gadolinium poisoning include pain in the arms and legs, bone pain, tissue burning and brain fog. The medical community and government agencies have recognized the toxicity of retained gadolinium from GBCAs as the primary contributor to the development of Nephrogenic Systemic Fibrosis (NSF) in patients with compromised renal function.

NSF may resemble skin diseases, such as scleroderma and scleromyxedema, with thickening and darkening developing on large areas of the skin, according to the Mayo Clinic. It can also affect internal organs, such as the heart, kidneys and lungs, and it can cause a disabling shortening of muscles and tendons in the joints (joint contracture).

NSF can begin days to months after exposure to gadolinium-containing contrast, but progresses quickly. Some signs and symptoms of nephrogenic systemic fibrosis may include:

• Swelling and tightening of the skin
• Thickening and hardening of the skin, typically on the arms and legs and sometimes on the body, but almost never on the face or head
• Skin that may feel “woody” and develop an orange-peel appearance and darkening (excess pigmentation)
• Burning, itching or severe sharp pains in areas of involvement
• Skin thickening that inhibits movement, resulting in loss of joint flexibility
• Rarely, blisters or ulcers

In some people, involvement of muscles and body organs

• Muscle weakness
• Limitation of joint motion caused by muscle tightening (contractures) in arms, hands, legs and feet
• Bone pain (usually severe)
• Reduced internal organ function, including heart, lung, diaphragm, gastrointestinal tract, or liver, but direct evidence is often lacking
• Yellow plaques on the white surface (sclera) of the eyes
• Blood clots