A new study found the rate at which patients with renal disease are undergoing MRIs using gadolinium-based contrast agents has decreased sharply since 2006, when the United States Food and Drug Administration issued its first warning of the link between those agents and the development of nephrogenic system fibrosis.

Published by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, the study examined data from patients receiving medical care in the VA Health Care System. According to the report, a total of 1,080,536 MRIs were performed between July 2005 and September 2008. Of these studies, 406,003, about 38 percent, used gadolinium-based contrast agents.

Since the FDA's warning in June 2006, the rate of MRIs remains unchanged among patients most patients. The rate declines, however, by 71 percent among patients with more serious kidney problems, those with a glomerular filtrate rate of 15-30.

The FDA announced in September that it is requiring gadolinium-based contrast agents to carry new warnings on their labels about the risk of nephrogenic systemic fibrosis (NSF) and patients with kidney disease. A patient who has developed NSF after being administered a gadolinium-based contrast agent may be entitled to financial compensation. For more information on your legal options, please contact a gadolinium lawyer of Williams Kherkher by calling 800-761-3187.