Interventional radiologists (IRs) are board-certified physicians who specialize in minimally invasive, targeted treatments. They offer the most in-depth knowledge of the least invasive treatments available coupled with diagnostic and clinical experience across all specialties.
IRs pioneered minimally-invasive modern medicine by inventing angioplasty and the catheter-delivered stent, which they used in the legs to treat peripheral arterial disease.
Today, interventional radiologists nonsurgically treat many conditions that once required surgery. They use X-rays, MRI, and other imaging to advance a catheter in the body, usually in an artery, to nonsurgically treat the source of the disease. Interventional radiology treatments offer less risk, pain, and recovery time compared to open surgery.