Goomba wrote:
>
> Arri London wrote:
>
> > The usual contrast agents for MRI contain gadolinium. However some CT
> > contrast agents can contain iodine.
> > Haven't yet had a bad reaction to the MRI agent but did have one to the
> > CT agent by the third go-round.
>
> Sometimes the value of the test has to be weighed against the risk of
> contrast. We can load 'em up with IV Benadryl and other things to lessen
> the allergic response.

Obviously one can't know about the reaction until it happens. Not being
allergic to seafood at all, the reaction to the CT agent surprised me.
The nursing staff treated the swelling of my arm as an allergic reaction
after phoning downstairs to find out what the heck the radiologist used
Still don't know what was used; it isn't in my medical records. Took
three days for all the swelling to go away.

Arri London wrote:

> Obviously one can't know about the reaction until it happens. Not being
> allergic to seafood at all, the reaction to the CT agent surprised me.
> The nursing staff treated the swelling of my arm as an allergic reaction
> after phoning downstairs to find out what the heck the radiologist used
> Still don't know what was used; it isn't in my medical records. Took
> three days for all the swelling to go away.

Sounds like an infiltrate to me. An infiltrate occurs when the injected
fluid seep out into the surrounding tissues instead of remaining in the
circulation system. When some drugs infiltrate the soft tissue,
depending on what the drug is, it might require more aggressive
intervention in dealing with it.

Goomba wrote:
>
> Arri London wrote:
>
> > Obviously one can't know about the reaction until it happens. Not being
> > allergic to seafood at all, the reaction to the CT agent surprised me.
> > The nursing staff treated the swelling of my arm as an allergic reaction
> > after phoning downstairs to find out what the heck the radiologist used
> > Still don't know what was used; it isn't in my medical records. Took
> > three days for all the swelling to go away.
>
> Sounds like an infiltrate to me. An infiltrate occurs when the injected
> fluid seep out into the surrounding tissues instead of remaining in the
> circulation system. When some drugs infiltrate the soft tissue,
> depending on what the drug is, it might require more aggressive
> intervention in dealing with it.


Could be but it the redness and itching aren't usually characteristic of
an infiltrate. The nurses felt it was an allergic reaction; presumably
they'd know the difference. The injection was very small in volume and
the swelling took time to develop.