CT iodine contrast

[magsyh]

Just wondering has any one been badly affected after a CT scan?

This happens to me 3 years ago I had a bad experience went hyper about 10 days after the scan. Ended up in hospital but it was all hushed up, they said they had no idea what was wrong with me. I lost a stone in weight within a week. I felt normal for about 9 months with good blood results but since I'm hypo. I now have a bad reaction to iodine even eating fish makes my heart race. I just wonder if the sudden exposure to iodine 3 years ago is the reason I'm hypo now and so sensitive to any form of iodine? Any body else?

[Hennerton]

Yes, I had one four years ago and mentioned that I had no thyroid and was on medication. Afterwards I was discharged and felt strange and light headed as I drove home. I became achey and tired, which lasted two weeks. I did not report it. Perhaps I should have done. For me it felt as though my medication was not being absorbed properly. I checked online and it seems to be quite common to get a reaction.

[nightingale-56]

A couple of hours after the CT Scan with Contrast, I had 4 bouts of projectile vomiting and awful lethargy for the rest of the day. When the Consultant came round the next day he just said bad luck for suffering, from which I gathered that it was more usual than we are being told. I have not suffered since. I did query about having it as we had been discussing it on this site previous to my Scan, but they talked me into having it as they said they could not get a clear enough picture without adding it. Never again!

[Greekchick in reply to nightingale-56]

I never have contrast dye or any dye - they will have to read everything as is!

[Greekchick]

No one with any thyroid disease or history even after TT should have iodine. This should be on all your standing orders for any tests involving CT/MRI scans or except the minute size tracer they use for the thyroid nuclear scan - which has the same amount of iodine as one slice of enriched white bread.

There are alternative dyes they can use. I was advised of this by the head of Nuclear Medicine and my endo at the hospital where all my tests are done.

Hope this is helpful. Positive thoughts to all!

[MrsBeasley in reply to Greekchick]

MRI doesn’t use iodine based contrast

[Whisky1956]

I had a ct scan with dye and shortly afterwards my upper body was covered in hives, including my face. Luckily it did not affect my breathing. I was quite ill for a few days and was advised to take antihistamines. Very scary.

[MrsBeasley]

Ask for an MRI next time you need contrast. It uses gadolinium and not iodine and although way more expensive than CT, can be used when you can’t have iodine.

[Greekchick in reply to MrsBeasley]

You are right, I was just speaking generally about scans and should have been more precise. Gadolinium is the recommended contrast. Thanks for that!

[helvella Administrator in reply to Greekchick]

The use of gadolinium has more recently been put under the microscope.

Here is one paper (full paper freely available) about the (possible) toxicity:

Biometals. 2016; 29: 365–376.

Published online 2016 Apr 6. doi: 10.1007/s10534-016-9931-7

PMCID: PMC4879157

PMID: 27053146

Gadolinium-based contrast agent toxicity: a review of known and proposed mechanisms

Moshe Rogosnitzky corresponding author and Stacy Branch

ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articl...

[Greekchick in reply to helvella]

Thanks for this! My GP had given me a paper on the use of gadolinium but I am still leery of contrast dyes so I try to avoid them unless absolutely a requirement for a particular scan.

[helvella Administrator in reply to Greekchick]

I believe that use of gadolinium has become less common because of these (possible) issues.

[dontbelieveit]

Ive read research that a percentage of people will go hyperthyroid after scans.Apparently it knocks your thyroid out for 48 hrs and then doesnt restart properly. some go hypothyroid but that isnt usually permanent. This is new research