Texas mom says her 10-year-old was laughing before his MRI and came back sobbing and clinging to a toy. She now suspects the contrast dye

Mehwish Khan (@hands.of.doubt) has been in and out of the hospital with her son for years because of his various health issues. However, she never expected her 10-year-old, Isa, to come back from an MRI for his worsening neurological symptoms seeming like a different child. The Texas mom claims she has been fighting the system since then to ensure he isn’t just dismissed as a psychiatric patient, and has been using her social media platforms to share his story. 

She recently took to her Instagram and TikTok to share the story of this initial moment, gaining over 507K views. In the video, Khan claimed, “My son had been having these neurological symptoms for weeks, and then he became confused and couldn’t walk. They took him for his MRI and lumbar puncture under sedation. The anesthesiologist told me they’d take care of him and he’d be back in about an hour.” The video then cut to a clip of Isa laughing in the hospital.

Then, as Khan grimly tells her viewers, “The boy who came back was not the same child that I had left with the MRI team,” the video cuts to show Isa sobbing incoherently as he clung to a soft toy. She alleged, “For the first couple of hours, they laughed it off because they said everyone reacts differently to sedation.” Six hours later, she claimed the anesthesiologist was called, and he had no explanation for what was happening. 

Things just got worse for the family

Khan stitched in a clip of Isa curled up on the floor screaming and told her viewers, “Days later, they diagnosed him with functional neurological disorder and told me he needs to be seen by a psychiatrist.” Then she alleged, “In the meantime, he was getting therapy, and the therapist told me that he was doing it for attention, which couldn’t be further from his nature.” 

After five months of searching for answers, Khan claimed that she finally convinced a neurologist to treat Isa for autoimmune encephalitis even though his biomarkers were negative. Allegedly, the treatment worked, and he began to improve. Still, Khan said she remained determined to find out what had triggered such a dramatic decline. 

Her research eventually led her to gadolinium. Khan’s story is based on her version of her experiences, and thus, this story shouldn’t be treated as verified fact. Gadolinium, however, is a commonly used agent with known side effects. According to DrugWatch, it is a rare-earth metal used in contrast agents, or GBCAs, for magnetic resonance imaging. As Khan described it, it is used to make tissue and tumors stand out.

DrugWatch noted that these agents are created through a process called chelation, which binds the toxic metal to organic molecules to make it safer for medical use. While these agents have been used in over 100 million scans in the last 25 years, they are not without controversy. In 2017, the FDA released a safety bulletin warning that gadolinium can remain in the body, including the brain and bones, for months or years after an MRI. However, the agency said retention had not been directly linked to harmful effects in patients with normal kidney function and that the benefits of the agents continue to outweigh the potential risks.

On Instagram, one user, claiming to be an MRI tech, noted that the physiological risks of this retention are still being debated. “The sad thing about this is the lack of education from the providers. They always warrant a contrast study without knowing what it really is intended for, especially in the emergency setting,” the user wrote.

In her content, Khan admits that she doesn’t have a conclusive idea of what went wrong, telling a viewer that Isa has pre-existing conditions. Khan explained that he deals with a combination of issues including hEDS, POTS, MCAS, and gastroenterological and neurological problems. She believes his neurological symptoms flare up when his allergies are worse, pointing back to Mast Cell Activation Syndrome.

DrugWatch wrote that serious side effects from gadolinium are rare, but they do happen. Potential complications include allergic reactions, gadolinium toxicity, and nephrogenic systemic fibrosis.

They noted that most people tolerate the contrast well, but some patients report conditions like gadolinium deposition disease. This is characterized by symptoms like brain fog, bone pain, and fatigue. In the United States, the FDA does not recognize this as an official diagnosis. However, some patients and researchers continue to report and study it.

Khan ended by saying the purpose of her post was to push for transparency about risks and informed consent. “Look, MRIs are important diagnostic tools, and I don’t want to create a panic about gadolinium contrast dye. I just wish I had known the risk before I promised my son he was safe,” she said.