Interventional Radiology

A stroke occurs when blood flow to a part of the brain is interrupted as a result of a blocked blood vessel. It is the brain’s equivalent of a heart attack and should be treated as urgent.

Strokes may also occur due to haemorrhage into the brain.
A hemorrhagic stroke occurs when a blood vessel in the brain ruptures, allowing blood to leak into the brain. An ischemic stroke occurs when a blood vessel is blocked by a blood clot.

Early intervention for an ischaemic stroke can save lives and reduces disability. Treatment depends on the severity and type of stroke.
Treatment will usually focus on restoring blood flow to the oxygen-starved brain, by administering intravenous or intr-arterial medication to dissolve blood clots. Some patients may, however, require the offending clot to be removed from the blocked artery to restore blood flow. This is achieved at one of our super-specialised stroke centres and involves the placement of delicate catheters within the arteries of the brain to aspirate or mechanically remove the clot from the cerebral artery.

The procedure is performed under general anaesthesia.
After the access site is numbed with local anaesthetic, a thin catheter is passed through a very small incision into the artery and, guided by X-rays, is maneuvered to the area of impaired circulation. Contrast material is injected to pinpoint the location and to determine whether the clot would be best treated by mechanical extraction or aspiration (sucking the clot out).

After the procedure:
You will remain in ICU and you will be medically managed for your stroke.