Imaging procedures being delayed due to global contrast dye shortage

PHILADELPHIA - The U.S. healthcare system that has been under siege for the last two years was dealt another blow when federal health regulators sounded the alarm on a shortage of contrast dye needed for important imaging procedure. 

The FDA announced a global shortage of contrast materials that it blamed on COVID-19 shutdowns in Shanghai, China, a major exporter of the medial dye. Hospitals are now being forced to make tough decisions to stretch their dwindling supplies. 

Contrast dye is used for several imaging procedures such as CAT Scans, MRIs, X-Rays, and ultrasounds. The dye helps give doctors a clearer image to see abnormal conditions in a person's body.

Diane Gardner, a 73-year-old Delaware County woman, said her doctor ordered a CAT scan to diagnose a blood clot issue. Days later, Gardner said she got a phone call from the hospital to reschedule the procedure to a shortage of dye. 

"I had a watchman which is a procedure for blood clots when you're on a blood thinner. So they wanted to see if the opening of the atrium healed," Gardner explained. "I got a phone call from the hospital that I was supposed to have the CAT scan done on June 9th and they told me that they had to postpone it because there's a shortage of dye,"

Other hospitals in the greater-Philadelphia area have also needed to postpone procedures due to the shortage. Lehigh Valley Health says it's currently working to get patient rescheduled. Temple Health says it's trying to provide care without disruptions, but alternative tests that don't use dye are available. 

"It's just scary because we don’t know what other shortages we have, and we should be making things in America not in China," Gardner said. She claims her procedure could be delayed for over a month from its original date.

Lehigh Valley Health released the following statement in response to the shortage: 

"Hospitals and health systems across the globe are experiencing an abrupt shortage of intravenous (IV) imaging contrast, a dye used in imaging tests, like computed tomography (CT) imaging. The shortage is expected to last through June and is the result of supply chain challenges caused by a major supplier in Shanghai and lockdowns in the region due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Multiple departments at Lehigh Valley Health Network (LVHN) have been affected, including CT, interventional radiology, the cardiac catheterization labs and operating rooms (OR). The health and safety of our community is our utmost priority, and we are taking proactive steps to appropriately administer our current supply of IV contrast to patients who need it most. LVHN has supply to diagnose the most critical cases including strokes, heart attacks, traumas and other life-threatening emergent conditions. LVHN has postponed outpatient imaging tests requiring IV contrasts.  These measures will only remain in effect during this shortage. Scans that do not require the dye are not impacted. LVHN has established a command center to respond in real time and is exploring alternative sources and vendors for IV contrast and using other imaging tools when appropriate, such as MRI. LVHN will reschedule impacted patients when we receive more supply. "