#Repost @todayisanational_day • • • • • “Each year on National Without a Scalpel Day January 16th recognizes the opportunities to treat disease without a scalpel. On this day in 1964, pioneering physician Charles Dotter performed the first angioplasty. The ground-breaking procedure to open a blocked blood vessel took place in Portland, Oregon. Not only did the angioplasty allow the patient to avoid leg amputation surgery, but she left the hospital days later with only a Band-Aid. No surgery, no stitches, no scars… In doing so, Dr. Dotter created a cutting-edge medical specialty called Interventional Radiology, where doctors treat disease through a tiny pinhole instead of open surgery. These doctors use x-rays and other medical imaging to see inside the body while they treat disease. These advances changed all of medicine. Today, minimally invasive, image-guided procedures (MIIP) can treat a broad range of diseases throughout the body, in adults and children: •cancer •heart disease •stroke •aneurysms •life-threatening bleeding •infertility •fibroids •kidney stones •back pain •infections •blocked blood vessels •many other conditions Even though trained specialists perform MIIP throughout the world, many people do not know about MIIP or if they could benefit from these life-changing treatments. The Interventional Initiative was established to raise awareness and educate the public about MIIP. The Interventional Initiative just completed the pilot episode of the documentary series Without a Scalpel, to be aired on a national network in 2016. Without a Scalpel features real patient stories and their doctors who treat them with life-changing MIIP. The Interventional Initiative submitted National Without a Scalpel Day in 2015. If you or someone you know could benefit from MIIP, visit www.theii.org or follow on Twitter @ interventional2.” #WithoutAScalpelDay (at Darlington, South Carolina) https://www.instagram.com/p/CKIgfUPjLpd/?igshid=1t86rwk0al2ru