Contrast Media

Short presentation of aspects important for the application of X-ray contrast media: Composition and properties of contrast media, handling with respect to stability, purity and sterility; applications, interaction, risks; drugs for prophylaxis and treatment of side effects.

This volume highlights and broadens our understanding of the correct use and the possible contraindications of contrast agents applied in radiology. Written by experts in the field, it not only focuses on the chemistry, physiochemical properties and pharmacokinetics of both iodinated and gadolinium-containing contrast agents, but also on the relevant safety issues such as frequency of their short- and long-term side effects and ways to avoid them nephrotoxicity risk related to the iodinated contrast agents NSF (nephrogenic systemic fibrosis) accumulation of gadolinium in the brain use of contrast agents in pediatric patients and pregnancy It also includes essential data on the use of contrast agents, such as scanning protocols, in the context of various clinical conditions. This comprehensive manual addresses all professionals involved in radiological imaging and is an invaluable tool for radiologists and technologists, as well as for residents and clinicians.

Examines in detail the different clinical applications of microbubble-based contrast agents. Explains the principles underlying the use of contrast-specific imaging techniques and the examination methodology. Contains numerous high-quality illustrations, including many in color. Written by recognized experts.

Two years only after the publication of the ? rst edition of “Contrast media – Safety issues and ESUR guidelines” in our book series Medical Radiology in 2006, it appeared that a second edition was urgently needed. The ? rst edition was indeed an exceptional success with our readership and sold out rapidly, but moreover the safety of MR contrast media urgently required a reappraisal after the publication of a new and dramatic adverse reaction to some of the gadolini- based agents: the so called NSF syndrome. I am very much indebted to Professor Henrik S. Thomsen and his academic colleagues from the ESUR Contrast Medium Safety Committee for accepting the task to prepare a second edition of their remarkable book.Within a record short period of time they have been able to complete this fully revised new volume. It offers to the readers a comprehensive overview of all problems related to the use of contrast media in modern radiology and of our latest knowledge and insights in the mechanisms of adverse reactions related to contrast media. It answers all questions that radiologists and referring physicians are confronted with in their daily practice when they consider the administration of these agents to their patients.

Journalists, always very direct and in search of sensation, essentially asked me two questions on the occasion of this workshop: What were the goals of the meeting? With the improvement of diagnosis through the development of image techniques, didn't the contrast media already have their future behind them? Many answers were provided during the course of the workshop, and in order to best answer the journalists I proposed the following synopsis. 1. Since the 1979 Colorado Springs workshop organized by E. Lasser, progress has been so rapid and the newly available works so numerous that another meeting on an international level for the purpose of pre senting and discussing these advances appeared indispensable. Why not then in Europe and why not in Lyon? To expand on this progress, by 1981 the new contrast media with less-hyperosmolar molecules, still in the trial stage in 1979, were al most all available commercially for angiography, albeit at prohibitive prices. The advantages of these various media are becoming better known; moreover, in the wake of Lasser's work, our understanding of the pathophysiology of their noxious effects is also advancing rapidly owing to the use of models (for the target organs: heart, vessel wall, nervous system, kidney; and for the more general reactions: blood cells, coagulation, complement system, circulating enzymatic systems). In addition, further new molecules are currently being studied in re search laboratories. 2.

This book is the first to cover the field of contrast media from basic sciences through to clinical practice. Textbook of Contrast Media provides the first exhaustive account of the use of contrast media in clinical practice. Edited by distinguished figures in the field, the book is divided into five main sections: history and background, X-ray contrast agents, MR contrast agents, ultrasound contrast agents, and future developments. Each chapter is fully referenced and benefits from the exensive use of high quality radiographs and illustrations.

This revised edition of Contrast Media: Safety Issues and Guidelines, updates the successful first edition and contains new chapters. It provides an invaluable, unique and unparalleled source of information on the safety issues relating to contrast media.

"The book consists of nine chapters. The first 3 chapters give a broad overview of the acoustic theory for bubble-sound interaction, both linear and nonlinear. Most contrast agents are stabilized in a shell, and this shell can have a strong influence on the interaction between the bubbles and the ultrasound. The effect of the shell is given special attention, as this is not easily found in other bubble literature. Chapters 4, 5, 6 and 7 describe experimental and theoretical methods used to characterize the acoustic properties of the agents, and results of studies on some agents. Chapter 8 shows how the theory and the experimental results can be combined and used to model various phenomena by means of computer simulations. The main purpose of the simulations is to get insight into the mechanisms behind the described phenomena, not to get accurate predictions and values.