About Catheter-Directed Thrombolysis and Thrombectomy
Minimally invasive treatment options that use medication directed into the clot
Catheter-directed thrombolysis and thrombectomyis are minimally invasive treatment options that use medication directed into the clot using a medical device to break up and dissolve abnormal blood clots.
What are the procedures?
In a catheter-directed thrombolysis procedure, X-ray imaging is used to help guide a special medication to the site of blood clots to dissolve the blockage. During the procedure, an interventional radiologist will insert a catheter through the skin into a vessel (artery or vein) and maneuver it to the site of the thrombosis, or blockage. The blood clot will then be dissolved by delivering medication directly to the blood clot to break up the clot.
Likewise, in a pharmaco-directed thrombectomy, once the blood clot is dissolved by delivering medication directly to the blood clot and by positioning a mechanical device at the site to break up the clot.
What are the benefits of these procedures?
Benefits of catheter-directed thrombolysis include improved blood flow, reduction and-or elimination of symptoms and effects without the need for more invasive surgery. Thrombolysis is a safe, highly effective way of re-establishing circulation blocked by a clot. In addition, it is less invasive than conventional open surgery. The procedure requires only a small nick in the skin as opposed to a taditional surgical incision. In addition, the hospital stay is relatively brief.
Recent medical publications on pharmaco-mechanical thrombectomy have reported the advantages of faster symptom relief, less procedure time, reduced time in the ICU, shorter hospital stays and subsequent cost savings.