Interventional Radiology

We got a lecture from Ernest Ring, one of the true pioneers of interventional radiology. Interventional radiology is a subspecialty which involves minimally invasive procedures done under image guidance such as ultrasound, CT, or fluoroscopy. Common procedures include injecting dye into a vessel (angiogram), putting a balloon and stent into a vessel, draining an infection, biopsying a lesion, and connecting different blood vessels (TIPS). In any case, Ernest Ring is an emertius professor here who did the first embolization to stop bleeding in a pelvic fracture and the first embolization to stop a diverticular bleed. He practically defined the field, conducting the original studies on applications of needles and catheters and coming up with new ways to treat recalcitrant diseases. He watched the field blossom and change over the last four decades. I really have a great respect for history, and it was simply inspiring to hear from someone who strode into the unknown and created around him such an exciting, brilliant, and innovative field.

Image of cerebral angiography is in the public domain, taken from Wikipedia. This beautiful image of the brain's blood vessels shows an injection in the left vertebral artery and flow in the contralateral vertebral artery, the basilar artery, and the posterior circulation of the circle of Willis.