Patient guides for interventional radiology
Understand your procedure before you have it.
Plain-language guides to procedures done through a tiny opening in the skin. Each one takes you through it step by step, and most have a 3D model you can turn.
Closest matches
No match yet. Try another word, like the part of the body, or see all 9 procedures.
Use the name on your referral letter, or choose a part of the body.
All procedures
Browse by part of the body
P-001, PelvisUterine fibroid embolizationShrinks fibroids by cutting off their blood supply, through a small opening at the groin or wrist.6 minutes to read3D model
P-002, PelvisProstate artery embolizationEases an enlarged prostate by reducing its blood supply, through a tiny opening at the groin or wrist.9 minutes to read3D model
P-003, Back and spineVertebroplasty and kyphoplastyTreats a painful broken bone in the spine by filling it with medical bone cement through a needle.9 minutes to read3D model
P-004, AbdomenEndovascular aneurysm repairFixes a bulge in the body’s main artery from the inside, through small openings at both groins.7 minutes to read3D model
P-005, AbdomenNephrostomy tubeA thin tube through your back drains urine from a blocked kidney into a bag, to ease the pressure.7 minutes to read3D model
3D model in progressP-006, Arm and chestPICC lineA thin tube from a vein in your upper arm to just above your heart, for treatment over weeks or months.10 minutes to read3D model in progress
P-007, AbdomenChemoembolization of the liverPuts cancer medicine into a liver tumour and blocks the artery that feeds it, through the groin or wrist.8 minutes to read3D model
3D model in progressP-008, AbdomenBiliary drainA thin tube through your skin and liver drains a blocked bile duct into a bag or into your bowel.10 minutes to read3D model in progress
3D model in progressP-009, LegVaricose vein treatmentSeals a leaky leg vein from the inside with heat, through a tiny opening, so blood uses healthy veins.8 minutes to read3D model in progress
How guides work
Your doctor can show you the model in clinic. At home, you can go over the same model, step by step, as often as you like.
The short version first
The whole procedure in four plain sentences, so nothing after it is a surprise.
Step by step, on a 3D model
About a dozen short steps. Where a guide has its 3D model, the model turns and opens to show each step as you read it.
Before, on the day and after
How to prepare, what happens when you arrive, what recovery is like, and when to get help.
- Plain languageWritten at about a grade 6 reading level, with medical words explained.
- SourcedThe sources for every guide are listed at the end of it.
- PrivateNo accounts, cookies or tracking, and no health information is collected.
- Clinical reviewNot done yet. Each guide will show the date it was reviewed.