Interventional radiology in the elderly

Konstantinos Katsanos, Farhan Ahmad, Renato Dourado, Tarun Sabharwal, Andreas Adam

Department of Interventional Radiology, Guy’s and St.Thomas’ Hospital, NHS Foundation Trust, London, UK

Abstract: Interventional radiological percutaneous procedures are becoming all the more important in the curative or palliative management of elderly frail patients with multiple underlying comorbidities. They may serve either as alternative primary minimally invasive therapies or adjuncts to traditional surgical treatments. The present report provides a concise review of the most important interventional radiological procedures with a special focus on the treatment of the primary debilitating pathologies of the elderly population. The authors elaborate on the scientific evidence and latest developments of thermoablation of solid organ malignancies, palliative stent placement for gastrointestinal tract cancer, airway stenting for tracheobronchial strictures, endovascular management of aortic and peripheral arterial vascular disease, and cement stabilization of osteoporotic vertebral fractures. The added benefits of high technical and clinical success coupled with lower procedural mortality and morbidity are highlighted.

Keywords: elderly, radiofrequency ablation, stents, aortic endografts, angioplasty, vertebroplasty