Safety Analysis of Iobitridol as a Nonionic Contrast Medium: A Postmarketing Multicenter Surveillance Study With 94,960 Patients Almost 20 Years After Introduction

OBJECTIVES: Our study sought to reevaluate the safety and diagnostic efficacy of iobitridol as a nonionic contrast medium after almost 20 years of use. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This noninterventional postmarketing surveillance noncontrolled, multicenter (168 centers in Germany) study enrolled 94,960 patients receiving intravenous or intra-arterial iobitridol. The majority of the adjusted population (n = 92,550, 98.2%) underwent either computed tomography examination (n = 46,502, 49.3%) or intravenous urography (n = 46,048, 48.8%). A standardized questionnaire was used to ascertain patient's information, known risk factors, renal function status, premedication, type of examination, injection of contrast agent, imaging quality, diagnostic value, and safety. RESULTS: A total of 469 patients (0.49%) experienced an adverse event (AE), and 24 patients (0.025%) reported a serious AE (SAE). All patients recovered and no fatal event occurred. The prevalence of AE was significantly higher in patients with at least one risk factor, with premedication, with a history of AE, in female and patients younger than 60 years old (P < 0.05). Presence of at least one risk factor is the only predictive factor for the prevalence of SAE (P = 0.042). In patients with a history of AE, premedication did not significantly lower the AE rate (P = 0.737). No statistically significant difference in the prevalence of AE between the different combination of cortisone and/or antihistamines as pretreatment was found. CONCLUSIONS: Iobitridol is a safe contrast medium with a high tolerability and efficacy. Presence of risk factors such as cardiovascular diseases, allergies, or asthma was the only significant predictive factor for an AE and an SAE. Premedication did not significantly lower the occurrence of an AE and an SAE.