Interventional Radiology is the subspecialty
of Radiology that uses imaging equipment to guide the physician in carrying
out a diagnostic or therapeutic procedure on a patient. Flouroscopy (an
X-ray which is taken and projected on a monitor in real time), ultrasound,
computed tomography (CT scanning), and more recently, MRI scanning, can be
used to guide physicians allowing them to carry out a great variety of
procedures which in the past, would have required surgery. Needle biopsies
and the placement of small tubes (catheters) to drain abscesses, blocked
kidneys or bile ducts, are examples of what is done in the Interventional
Radiology area.
Angiography is the process of taking pictures of
the blood vessels in the body. A small catheter (about as thick as a piece
of spaghetti) is placed into a blood vessel (usually through a puncture made
at the groin) and contrast material (X-ray dye) is injected through this to
allow one to see the blood vessel and assess for any abnormalities. The
angiography unit at PRHC enables us to study virtually any blood vessel in
the body (outside of the heart; cardiac angiography is done in the cardiac
cath lab). Most angiograms at PRHC are done to assist our surgeons in
assessment of patients with vascular diseases in order to plan their
therapy.
In some cases, balloon angioplasty (using a catheter with
a balloon on the end of it) can be used to stretch a narrowed or blocked
blood vessel. A metal stent may be placed inside the blood vessel to help
keep it open. Catheters can also be used to block blood vessels by passing a
variety of materials through them into the blood vessel. This can be done to
stop bleeding from an injured blood vessel, or to stop blood flow to a
tumour, for example.
Most of the procedures done in the
Interventional Radiology area are done on an outpatient basis, through an
incision in the skin that measures less than a quarter inch in diameter. The
alternative to most of these preocedures is surgery.
The
Angiography/Interventional Radiology section at PRHC is one of the busiest
of its size in the province. The unit is staffed by radiology technologists
and nurses, all specially trained, as well as radiologists.
Contact
Phone: 876-5039
Hours
8:30 a.m. - 4:30 p.m.