An arteriovenous malformation (AVM) is an abnormal connection between arteries and veins, bypassing the capillary system. Usually congenital, this vascular anomaly is widely known because of its occurrence in the central nervous system, but can appear anywhere in the body. The symptoms of AVMs can range from none at all to intense pain or bleeding, and they can lead to other serious medical problems.
Radiology is the medical discipline that uses medical imaging to diagnose diseases and guide their treatment, within the bodies of humans and other animals. It began with radiography, but today it includes all imaging modalities, including those that use no electromagnetic radiation, as well as others that do, such as computed tomography (CT), fluoroscopy, and nuclear medicine including positron emission tomography (PET). Interventional radiology is the performance of usually minimally invasive medical procedures with the guidance of imaging technologies such as those mentioned above.
Angiography or arteriography is a medical imaging technique used to visualize the inside, or lumen, of blood vessels and organs of the body, with particular interest in the arteries, veins, and the heart chambers. Modern angiography is performed by injecting a radio-opaque contrast agent into the blood vessel and imaging using X-ray based techniques such as fluoroscopy.
Interventional radiology (IR) is a medical specialty that performs various minimally-invasive procedures using medical imaging guidance, such as x-ray fluoroscopy, computed tomography, magnetic resonance imaging, or ultrasound. IR performs both diagnostic and therapeutic procedures through very small incisions or body orifices. Diagnostic IR procedures are those intended to help make a diagnosis or guide further medical treatment, and include image-guided biopsy of a tumor or injection of an imaging contrast agent into a hollow structure, such as a blood vessel or a duct. By contrast, therapeutic IR procedures provide direct treatment—they include catheter-based medicine delivery, medical device placement, and angioplasty of narrowed structures.
Carotid artery stenosis is a narrowing or constriction of any part of the carotid arteries, usually caused by atherosclerosis.
Paget–Schroetter disease is a form of upper extremity deep vein thrombosis (DVT), a medical condition in which blood clots form in the deep veins of the arms. These DVTs typically occur in the axillary and/or subclavian veins.
The uterine artery is an artery that supplies blood to the uterus in females.
Cone beam computed tomography is a medical imaging technique consisting of X-ray computed tomography where the X-rays are divergent, forming a cone.
A bronchopleural fistula (BPF) is a fistula between the pleural space and the lung. It can develop following pneumonectomy, lung ablation, post-traumatically, or with certain types of infection. It may also develop when large airways are in communication with the pleural space following a large pneumothorax or other loss of pleural negative pressure, especially during positive pressure mechanical ventilation. On imaging, the diagnosis is suspected indirectly on radiograph. Increased gas in the pneumonectomy operative bed, or new gas within a loculated effusion are highly suggestive of the diagnosis. Infectious causes include tuberculosis, Actinomyces israelii, Nocardia, and Blastomyces dermatitidis. Malignancy and trauma can also result in the abnormal communication.
Interventional oncology is a subspecialty field of interventional radiology that deals with the diagnosis and treatment of cancer and cancer-related problems using targeted minimally invasive procedures performed under image guidance. Interventional oncology has developed to a separate pillar of modern oncology and it employs X-ray, ultrasound, computed tomography (CT) or magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to help guide miniaturized instruments to allow targeted and precise treatment of solid tumours located in various organs of the human body, including but not limited to the liver, kidneys, lungs, and bones. Interventional oncology treatments are routinely carried out by interventional radiologists in appropriate settings and facilities.
Radiation lobectomy is a form of radiation therapy used in interventional radiology to treat liver cancer. It is performed in patients that would be surgical candidates for resection, but cannot undergo surgery due to insufficient remaining liver tissue. It consists of injecting small radioactive beads loaded with yttrium-90 into the hepatic artery feeding the hepatic lobe in which the tumor is located. This is done with the intent of inducing growth in the contralateral hepatic lobe, not dissimilarly from portal vein embolization (PVE).
Anne Christine Roberts is an American interventional radiologist who is credited with the invention of the Roberts Uterine Catheter (RUC), a catheter designed to facilitate navigation through the uterine arteries and currently used widely for uterine artery embolization procedures. She also served as president of the Society of Interventional Radiology (SIR) (1996-1997) and was the second woman to become president of the society.
Katharine Legg Krol, M.D., FSIR, FACR, is an American interventional radiologist. She was part of the original Palmaz and Wallstent trials for the treatment of peripheral arterial disease (PAD). She served as the president of the Society of Interventional Radiology (SIR) (2006-2007) - becoming the fourth woman to have held this position.
Helen C. Redman was an American interventional radiologist, noted for being a founding member of the American Association for Women Radiologists (AAWR) in 1981 and the first female president of the Radiological Society of North America (RSNA) from 1994-1995.
Renate L. Soulen, MD, FSIR is an American physician. She is credited as one of three women co-founders of the Society for CardioVascular and Interventional Radiology, a founding member of the Philadelphia Angio Club, and the first female president of the Philadelphia Roentgen Ray Society.
Balloon pulmonary angioplasty (BPA) is an emerging minimally invasive procedure to treat chronic thromboembolic pulmonary hypertension (CTEPH) in people who are not suitable for pulmonary thromboendarterectomy (PTE) or still have residual pulmonary hypertension and areas of narrowing in the pulmonary arterial tree following previous PTE.
Segmental arterial mediolysis (SAM) is a rare disorder of the arteries characterized by the development of aneurysms, blood clots, narrowing of the arteries (stenoses), and blood collections (hematomas) in the affected distribution.
Digital variance angiography (DVA) is a novel image processing method based on kinetic imaging, which allows the visualization of motion on image sequences generated by penetrating radiations. DVA is a specific form of kinetic imaging: it requires angiographic image series, which are created by X-ray or fluoroscopic imaging and by the administration of contrast media during various medical procedures. The resulting single DVA image visualizes the path of contrast agent with relatively low background noise.
Anna-Maria Belli, MD, FCIRSE is a British interventional radiologist known for her work in vascular interventional radiology and for holding leadership positions in interventional radiology societies in Britain and Europe.
Jeanne LaBerge is American interventional radiologist known for her work establishing the field of interventional radiology as a primary specialty in medicine. She was named a fellow of the Society of CardioVascular and Interventional Radiology in 1992.
