Radiology can be used not only to make diagnoses, but also to treat them. Interventional radiologists use realtime radiological images to monitor their progress as they carry out work inside the body, using fine tubes and wires.
The man in this picture was in a high speed car accident; the sudden deceleration tore his aorta in two places (see arrows). Interventional radiologists treated this immediately by placing a life-saving stent (a thin covered tube replacing the blood vessel wall), which was inserted via an artery in the groin. He was able to go home within a week.
