Stents and Angioplasty via the Wrist: Not Just Evangelical Anymore

In my newly posted interview with Dr. Ron Caputo of St. Joseph’s Hospital Health Center in Syracuse, New York, he answers my question about what’s changed in the transradial approach over the past five years, as follows:

Dr. Ron Caputo

Dr. Ron Caputo

“Transradial has really exploded. We’ve gone from less than 1% of operators knowing or even being interested in transradial to almost the majority of operators now having heard of or interested in doing it. And a significant number of doctors are using transradial now routinely in their practice. The last number I saw was 1% or 2% five years ago to 15-20% of all PCIs are now being done transradially in the U.S. So that’s big.

“When I talked about transradial five years ago, it was basically like I was doing an evangelical session trying to convince people it’s the right thing to do. Now everywhere I go people are doing it and we’re talking about tips and tricks. Docs have gone from talking about ‘how do you start a radial program’ to ‘these are commonly encountered problems and here’s how you deal with them.’ So it’s really evolved.”

In this interview, part of our new series about the transradial revolution and evolution, Dr. Caputo, a long-time radialist, discusses how the wrist approach has all kinds of benefits for the new healthcare environment. He touches on the issues of reducing 30-day readmissions, outpatient PCI, and institutional adoption.

Dr. Caputo also discusses the role of device manufacturers in advancing this technique – and who is and who isn’t yet in the mix….

There haven’t been many advances in medicine where cost reduction, better patient experience and improved outcomes all occur together, but the transradial approach is definitely one.

For the whole story, read my entire interview with Dr. Caputo.

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About The Radial Access Center on Angioplasty.Org
To assist in educating the professional and patient population in the U.S. about the this technique, Angioplasty.Org created the “Radial Access Center for Transradial Approach” in 2007, a special section devoted to information and news about the transradial technique, for both patients and physicians.

The Radial Center, supported by Medtronic Cardiovascular, features interviews with leading practitioners of the radial technique, special articles detailing the advantages of the transradial techniques, and opportunities for physicians and cath lab staff to learn the technique, through a listing of upcoming training courses in the transradial approach.

For patients there is also a “Hospital Locator” that lists U.S. centers practicing radial angiography. As Dr. Howard Cohen of Temple University Hospital in Pennsylvania says of the wrist technique, “Patients really prefer it. 95% of people who’ve had it both ways would say ‘I’m coming back to you, Dr. Cohen because I like this transradial a lot better than the other way!’

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