FM DECEMBER 2018 ISSUE - digital edition

events
IRCON 2018 stresses need for
multi-disciplinary approach
Interventional radiologists gather to explore ways to complement
skills with various specialties
DIVYA CHOYIKUTTY
Interventional Radiologists from
across the nation rubbed shoulders
with clinicians of various specialties
at the IRCON 2018 held at Kochi on 10
November, 2018, commemorating the
International Radiology day.
The one-day meet, which was
titled “Interventional Radiologists Meet
Referring Specialities” and organized
by the Interventional Radiologists
Association of Kerala, highlighted various
advanced treatment options available
in the field today and their relevance
to specialties such as hepatology,
nephrology, urology and gynecology.
“The basic idea of the conference
was to encourage other radiologists
and to create awareness among
other specialties of the pivotal role
interventional radiologists play in patient
care,” said Dr. Lijesh Kumar, organizing
secretary and consultant radiologist at
PVS hospital, Kochi.
The conference discussed various
treatment techniques, including
ablation therapy, embolisation, aortic
stenting, balloon-occluded retrograde
transvenous obliteration (BRTO) and
transjugular intrahepatic portosystemic
shunt (TIPS), underscoring their role in
helping patients with bleeding, while
enhancing their survival chances by
providing quality time for a definitive
therapy.
“Over 90% of liver cancers are now
treated by interventional radiologists
where we can go through the arteries
and ablate the tumours, thereby
improving the condition of the patient
by avoiding major surgeries. Mostly,
MANY CLINICIANS WHO
HAVE NOT INTERACTED
WITH INTERVENTIONAL
RADIOLOGISTS ARE MOSTLY
UNAWARE OF THEIR WORK
only 20-30% of liver cancers due to
cirrhosis are operable, while we can do
the therapy even in patients who cannot
undergo surgery,” says Dr. Amar Mukund,
Associate Professor Institute of Liver and
Biliary Sciences, New Delhi.
He also emphasized the prognostic
value of techniques like hepatic venous
pressure gradient (HVPG), which can be
used as the gold standard for patients
at risk of liver cirrhosis.
“Techniques like HPVG should
be accessible at every hepatology
centre in India,” said Dr. G.N. Ramesh,
participating in a panel discussion on
treating the complication of variceal
bleed.
“We are changing, but right now we
have so many barriers and are lacking
in the number of experts and facilities
in interventional radiology in most
hospitals,“ says Dr. Philip Augustine,
Gastroenterologist, Ernakulam Medical
Center.
“With its image-guided
interventional procedures, IR has already
enabled safe renal transplantation. We
need more dedicated experts to train IR
and increase public awareness, making
it accessible at the medical college
level,” said Dr. Gireesh, Warawdekar
senior Interventional Radiologist, Lilavati
Hospital & Research Centre, Mumbai.
The conference discussed the need
for a multidisciplinary board meeting
where all the specialties can convene
and narrow down the best treatment,
providing a tailor-made approach for
each patient.
The conference also involved
workshops on biopsy and drainage
techniques and aortic stenting, and was
attended by over 270 participants.
92 / FUTURE MEDICINE / DECEMBER 2018