Advanced Technology
Using state-of-art technology in combination with the latest medical devices
and proven techniques,
conditions that formerly required skull opening and surgical treatment can now be
approached safely with minimally invasive techniques from inside the blood
vessels themselves.
Through a small incision in the groin, a variety of catheters (long polymer
tubes) and devices can be navigated under X-ray guidance (fluoroscopy)
into the arteries throughout the body to treat without the need to open
the skull. Several types of devices (coils, stents, angioplasty balloons,
clot removal devices) can be placed into vessels via these catheters to
treat many vascular conditions of the brain and spine.
Compared to traditional surgery, these procedures result in shorter hospital
stays and faster recovery times. In addition, interventional neuroradiologists
at Hoag use advanced
CT and
MRI techniques in the planning stages of each patient’s treatment.