Iohexol vs. metrizamide in studies of glucose metabolism. A survey.

Nonionic contrast media represent a significant advance for myelography due to their substantially lower neurotoxicity. Some side effects have been noted with metrizamide, however. Origins of adverse effects have not been clearly defined. Studies reviewed here investigated the effects of two nonionic contrast media, metrizamide and iohexol, on glucose metabolism in neural tissue cells in vitro using rat hippocampal tissue slices. Isotonic metrizamide produced metabolic disturbances that may partially explain some clinical adverse effects. It was hypothesized that iohexol, which, unlike metrizamide, does not contain a 2-deoxy-D-glucose component, would not have this effect. A series of in vitro experiments compared the two media. Results showed no evidence that iohexol caused metabolic disturbances, but in vitro there was a depressive effect on metabolism from hypertonicity. In vivo water will rapidly diffuse toward hypertonic areas, thus neutralizing the osmotic effect. The lesser metabolic effect suggests that iohexol would be safer than metrizamide for subarachnoid examinations.