Korean J Med.
2010 Apr;78(4):507-511.
A case of nephrogenic systemic fibrosis following gadolinium exposure in a peritoneal dialysis patient
- Affiliations
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- 1Department of Internal Medicine, Dong-A University College of Medicine, Busan, Korea. anws@dau.ac.kr
- 2Department of Pathology, Dong-A University College of Medicine, Busan, Korea.
Abstract
- Nephrogenic systemic fibrosis is a systemic illness that only affects patients with kidney failure. Exposure to gadolinium-based contrast agents has been associated with the subsequent development of nephrogenic systemic fibrosis in patients with decreased renal function. Nephrogenic systemic fibrosis is characterized by skin induration after swelling and limited joint movement through a loss in flexibility that preferentially affects the extremities. A 58-year-old man in peritoneal dialysis developed swelling and stiffness of the lower limbs following gadolinium exposure for brain magnetic resonance imaging. This patient was diagnosed with nephrogenic systemic fibrosis by CD34 immunoreactivity of subcutaneous fibroblasts in a skin biopsy. We report, for the first time in Korea, that nephrogenic systemic fibrosis developed after gadolinium exposure in a peritoneal dialysis patient.