Medical Questions » Radiology Questions » Question No. 835
| Question: | My husband recently underwent a CAT scan, but suffered severely with diarrhoea for two weeks afterwards, and was at one stage considered at risk of dying. A doctor told him that he had an allergic reaction to the dye injected for the CAT scan. Can you warn people of these risks? |
| Answer: | The contrast dyes that are injected into some patients before an X-ray or CAT scan to get a better picture can cause rare fatal reactions but are 20 times less risky than travelling by car.
There is no evidence that new contrast dyes recently introduced are safer, even though they cost up to six times as much.
In one recent study, only eight deaths occurred after more than 600,000 dye injections—an extraordinarily low risk, considering that many of those injected were critically ill.
In those under 65 years of age, the risk was far less than in those over 65, and there was a close relationship to the health of the patient. Survival after a severe reaction depended upon the availability of resuscitation equipment.
There has been much public anxiety over this issue, but when the benefits are weighed against the risks, proceeding with a potentially disease-identifying and therefore life-saving procedure is far safer than waiting until the disease becomes more obvious.
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