Author: Aaron Lessen M.D. Educational Pearls: Regularly a patient’s creatinine level is an important factor in determining whether a patient will receive IV contrast with a CT because it is thought that contrast can harm the kidneys and could worsen underlying kidney disease. A recent retrospective study compared the rates of worsening kidney problems between patients who received a CT scan with contrast, a CT without contrast, and no CT. The study even included patients with creatinines of up to 4 before excluding patients. The study suggested that there is no difference in the rate of worsening kidney problems between the three groups. References: http://www.annemergmed.com/article/S0196-0644(16)31388-9/fulltext