Contrast use: waste not--want not

Efficient use of low-osmolar contrast media is essential, owing to their cost and increasing substitution for conventional agents. A study was undertaken in three radiology departments to examine use of intravascular contrast media. Over a one-month period in the summer of 1987, the amount of intravascular contrast medium used and discarded was measured in one community hospital and two university-affiliated hospitals in southwestern Ontario. The major part of the waste occurred in the angiography suite, while minimal wastage was recorded in computed tomography. Much less contrast was wasted in the community hospital than in the teaching hospitals. Thirteen percent of all contrast material used by the three hospitals was discarded. Some wastage appears inevitable. Multidose dispensing systems as well as variety in bottle sizes have been proposed to reduce waste. Individual departments need to be aware of the problem and analyze their own patterns of contrast use.