Patient Information Section

Welcome

The essential role of interventional radiology in the treatment of many chronic and emergency conditions is increasingly recognised by General Practitioners, Hospital Consultants and the Department of Health.  This section aims to provide up to date and authoritative information written by UK experts, which patients, health care professionals and the general public will find useful.  We hope that this information will help you to choose the treatment which best suits you.

To the left you will see links to detailed descriptions of certain common conditions and treatments.  Click on the links relevant to your interest.  Briefer descriptions of various Interventional Radiology procedures can be found in the patient information sheets.  These have been revised by members of the BSIR in conjunction with the patient liaison group of the Royal College of Radiologists.  The information sheets are designed to provide concise, clear accurate accounts of the most common interventional radiological procedures.  Updated versions of these leaflets will be available in March 2011.

In 2010 interventional radiology was recognised in the UK as the only subspecialty of radiology with its own training curriculum and defined 6 year training programme.  This should result in an increase in the numbers of interventional radiologists in training in the near future.

From a patient’s perspective these changes should make it easier to see an interventional radiologist in an outpatient clinic to discuss treatment options.  The ‘find a doctor’ facility on the website should help you locate an interventional radiologist who provides appropriate services near you.

BSIR is actively promoting the importance of ensuring that there are appropriate arrangements to provide interventional radiology cover across the country 24 hours a day.  If you have any comments or suggestions to help us to improve this site or interventional radiology services please contact us using the patient suggestion link at the bottom of the page.

Information for patients on radiation doses

Radiation exposure during interventional procedures is generally regarded as low but higher radiation doses might be necessary in difficult or complex cases.  You can discuss this further with the clinician performing your procedure.

Enquiries

The Society cannot respond to individual enquiries regarding the specific treatments for individual patients, as these decisions require a proper doctor patient relationship with full knowledge of the clinical history and other salient facts.  This can only be achieved through a clinical consultation.  Questions regarding whether and when a treatment is recommended or concerning cost effectiveness are in the remit of the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) and specific recommendations can be viewed on the NICE website http://guidance.nice.org.uk 

BSIR as an organisation do not recommend treatments either to individual patients or to groups of patients.  We make our expert review available through the appropriate National bodies such as NICE etc.  The Society does not collect information on the  availability of treatments through the NHS or privately.

Patients seeking treatment in a geographical area should consult the Find a Doctor facility at www.bsir.org  The Society will occasionally issue a position statement regarding treatments for certain conditions.  These can be found on the information page of the patient section.

BSIR Council 2012