Saturday, March 23, 2013

Omniscan Dye Used for MRI Contrasts Contains Toxin, May Cause Disease


Majia here: This story really raises my ire because I've been exposed to the dye used to sharpen images twice in the past 5 years and had strange reactions after the MRI.

I have two pituitary tumors in my brain and they've been mapped using the MRI dye. Identification of these tumors has provided no medical benefits because they are considered inoperable unless they begin growing rapidly, are in danger of imploding, or are producing hormones at abnormal levels.

I experienced terrible "hangover" like symptoms after each of my latest two MRIs using contrast. The second time my symptoms lasted 3 days.

After the first MRI, I presumed that the effects were from the trauma of the sound and vibrations because my brain MRIs last about 45 minutes total.

The last time I was more suspicious that the dye could have caused my symptoms because I had a strange flush/faint reaction after the dye was injected by i.v.

My hairdresser told me she had the exact same reaction after being injected with the dye.

Both of us were told by the nurses and technicians on staff that our reactions were simply "stress" reactions that could have no relationship to the dye.

Now I wonder whether our reactions were due to sensitivity to the dye's chemicals. Both of us have severe allergies and chemical sensitivities but are otherwise in good health.

GE Failed to Adequately Warn about Dangers of its MRI Dye, Jury Finds by Jeff Gerth March 22, 2013 Propublica http://www.propublica.org/article/ge-failed-to-adequately-warn-about-dangers-of-its-mri-dye-jury-finds

[Excerpted] In a setback for GE Healthcare, a jury today found that the company failed to adequately warn patients and doctors about the dangers of its medical imaging dye. The jurors awarded $5 million to the plaintiff and his wife.

The verdict, after a two week trial in federal court in Cleveland, marks the first time a jury has examined whether the dye, injected into patients to sharpen MRI scans, can cause a rare but debilitating disease in which large areas of the skin become thick and hard. ProPublica investigated the dye in 2009 and 2010, revealing that GE ignored the advice of its own safety experts to "proactively" restrict its use....

Omniscan and similar dyes manufactured by other companies contain a toxic metal, gadolinium, which is bonded with a protective coating to keep it inert. In the vast majority of patients, the drug is filtered out through the kidneys without causing harm. There have been no new cases of the disease in recent years. 

 Majia here: Over and over again I realize how foolish I am to accept without reservation the 'TRUTHS' pronounced by health care professionals.

Over and over again I learn that their knowledge, which is presented as DOCTRINE, is based on flawed research studies

Greed and corruption are the primary, albeit not exclusive, drivers for the flawed research. 

Yet medical professionals - doctors, nurses, technicians - too often succor their doctrines and are absolutely unwilling to even consider contrary evidence.

This lack of intellectual flexibility significantly impinges upon the provision of care and can result in patients being exposed to needless risks and death itself. 


 

 

4 comments:

  1. WOW Majia, I developed a giant pituitary prolactinoma a month after Fuku. By January, it had grown to the point where I lost half the vision in my right eye, and had severe eye flashes and migraines.

    We should compare notes!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hormone-secreting adenomas are more dangerous, but non-functioning adenomas are more difficult to treat.

      Long-Term Health-Related Quality of Life of Surgically Treated Pituitary Adenoma Patients: A Descriptive Study

      http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3549391/

      The problems with NF tumors are visual defects and headaches, I believe. You don't need to rush to surgery unless you have these symptoms. (I've been studying prolactinomas mostly, though.)

      So I'm not sure why you need the MRIs anyway.

      Delete
  2. I'm sorry, Majia. This makes me furious. Now I think that we should run from the white coats, unless there is a broken bone involved. Thermography instead of mammograms, at least until the thermography reveals a problem, etc. Bobby1 has some advice about pituitary tumors on his blog.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Corruption and blind arrogance everywhere we turn.

    :(

    ReplyDelete

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