EP 9: Gadolinium Deposition Disease: The Litigation Tsunami No One Sees Coming

There’s a litigation tsunami on the horizon. If you order any MR imaging studies, you will want to hear more. Including how to mitigate the risk. Gadolinium is a contrast agent. Each year, about 30 million MR scans are performed. 1/3^rd use contrast.

The newly described diagnosis is called Gadolinium Deposition Disease. It was described only recently in clinical journals. Even today, the diagnosis is controversial.

But, the lawsuits have started.

First up, lawsuits against manufacturers/distributors of gadolinium contrast agents. Chuck Norris (and his wife) are some of the plaintiffs. These are being propelled in MultiDistrict Litigation (MDL) by a small number of attorneys.

For those attorneys left out, they are starting to target healthcare systems, radiologists, and doctors who ordered such studies.

On this episode of the Medical Liability Minute, Dr. Segal interviews Dr. Benjamin Harvey, Director of Quality Improvement, Department of Radiology, Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School.

Learn about Gadolinium Deposition Disease. Is it real? Is it just litigation theatre? If you order even one MR with contrast, learn how to mitigate the legal risk of being caught in the snare.