intraarteriel

Intraarterial refers to a route or location within the arterial system. In medicine, it most often describes the delivery of substances directly into an artery via a catheter, either for diagnostic imaging or therapeutic purposes. This approach concentrates the drug or agent in a target area and can limit systemic exposure compared with intravenous administration. The term contrasts with routes such as intravenous, intramuscular, or subcutaneous administration, and with places within arteries such as intravascular.

Applications include hepatic arterial infusion for liver tumors, where chemotherapy is delivered through the hepatic artery; transarterial chemoembolization (TACE), which uses a catheter to deliver chemotherapy followed by embolic material to block the artery feeding a tumor; and selective catheter-based therapies such as radioembolization with radioactive beads. In ophthalmology, intraarterial chemotherapy has been used for retinoblastoma by delivering drugs directly into the ophthalmic artery. In neurology and emergency medicine, intraarterial thrombolysis or thrombectomy involves delivering clot-dissolving medications or devices into cerebral arteries to treat acute ischemic stroke.

Procedures typically require interventional radiology or endovascular specialists. A catheter is introduced through an artery (often the femoral or radial artery) and navigated under imaging guidance. Risks include arterial injury, bleeding, infection, contrast reactions, non-target tissue damage, and radiation exposure. The choice of intraarterial therapy depends on the disease, anatomy, and patient factors.