Bayer, GE, Mallinckrodt, and Bracco named in latest gadolinium suit

Lawsuits mount for gadolinium contrast agent manufacturers. Source: University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine.

The law firm of Levin, Simes Kaiser & Gornick reported that it has filed suit against Bayer Healthcare Pharmaceuticals for the manufacture and release of a compound (a gadolinium contrast agent) into the market, which the suit claims consists of highly toxic metals that allegedly causes consumers to suffer a painful and deadly disease.

The complaint filed March 3 in U.S. District Court Northern District of California names GE Healthcare, Mallinckrodt, and Bracco Diagnostics as defendants, in addition to Bayer.

According to the complaint, the plaintiffs, William and Patricia Paschal, alleged that William Paschal contracted nephrogenic systemic fibrosis (NSF) in January through intravenous injections containing the gadolinium-based contrast that is manufactured and sold by defendants.

NSF, also known as nephrogenic fibrosing dermopathy (NSD), has been shown to occur in patients presenting with renal insufficiency who undergo an MRI exam that employs a gadolinium-based contrast agent.

The Paschals’ attorneys allege that the defendants never tested the compound's safety on individuals with kidney impairments before marketing it; however they stated that tests conducted on animals showed internal and external scarring.

The San Francisco-based law firm said that the complaint charges the defendants with failure to warn, design defect, failure to adequately test, negligence, negligent misrepresentation, fraud, concealment, suppression or omission of material facts, breach of express and implied warranty and loss of consortium.