Detection of Renal Dysfunction by Point of Care Creatinine Testing in Patients Undergoing Peripheral MR Angiography

Kevin Kalisz¹, Amir H. Davarpanah¹, Asad A. Usman¹, Jeremy Collins¹, Timothy J. Carroll¹, James C. Carr¹

Based on a retrospective review of patient charts, we sought to analyze the effectiveness of pre-MRA study questionnaires in identifying patients at risk for developing nephrogenic systemic fibrosis. Only 6.9% of stage 3 patients were aware of any history of renal dysfunction, whereas 50% of stage 4 and 100% of stage 5 patients admitted any history of renal dysfunction via questionnaires. It is concluded that a pre-study questionnaire alone cannot be relied upon in screening at-risk patients, and point of care creatinine testing can more reliably detect at-risk patients scheduled to undergo lower extremity MRA studies.