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by bigdang 1761 days ago
If you do have an MRI, skip the contrast. They describe it as a harmless dye when in fact it’s a toxic heavy metal known as Gadolinium injected straight into your bloodstream, and is retained indefinitely by your body and deposited in your bones and skull: https://www.fda.gov/drugs/drug-safety-and-availability/fda-d...
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Upside: there are very few indications for an MRI with contrast, and epidemiological studies have shown current gadolinium-based contrast appears to be well-tolerated (i.e. very low risk of nephrogenic systemic fibrosis in patients with renal failure). Downside: if an MRI protocol calls for contrast, then it’s necessary to use contrast to obtain the information desired (i.e. there’s often little use getting a non-contrasted MRI of the protocol calls for contrast but there is a contraindication).