Neurointervention is a rapidly evolving and highly specialized field of medicine that focuses on the targeted, catheter-based treatment of diseases affecting the blood vessels of the brain and spinal cord. For the layperson, it is easiest to understand it as a kind of „vascular surgery inside the brain,” during which the doctor does not open the skull but instead inserts a thin tube (catheter) into the body’s blood vessels through a small puncture, usually in the femoral artery, and guides it all the way to the brain.
Course: Vascular Neurology and Neurointervention (General Medicine 5th year)
This field can be life-saving in emergencies such as cerebrovascular accidents, for example ischemic stroke, in which a blood clot blocks one of the brain’s vessels, causing the affected area to rapidly deteriorate due to lack of oxygen. In such cases, the neurointervention specialist mechanically removes the clot from inside the vessel using a special device—often while the patient is still awake. This procedure has revolutionized stroke care in recent years, as timely intervention dramatically improves survival rates and recovery outcomes.
However, neurointervention is not limited to emergency situations. Slowly developing conditions—such as brain aneurysms (bulging of blood vessels), arteriovenous malformations (AVMs), or spinal vascular abnormalities—can also be treated using catheter-based techniques. In these cases, the doctor delivers microscopic coils or glue-like substances into the vessel to prevent future brain hemorrhages or other complications.
Neurointervention demands exceptional manual dexterity, a deep understanding of anatomy, advanced technological knowledge, and quick decision-making skills. Procedures are performed using live X-ray imaging (angiography), allowing doctors to navigate catheters through the brain’s extremely delicate vascular system in real time.
Overall, neurointervention is one of the most exciting and precise fields in modern medicine, where technology, medical expertise, and rapid response can literally mean the difference between life and death. It is a specialization that is expected to play an increasingly important role in the treatment of neurological disorders in the future—with less pain, fewer scars, and faster recovery.
As Hungary’s first independent Department of Neurointervention, our mission is to pass on this critically important expertise.