[Usefulness of transradial angiography and interventional angiography for abdominal diseases: comparison with transfemoral or transbrachial approach].

Transradial angiography has recently emerged as an alternative to the transfemoral or transbrachial approach, especially for coronary or cerebral procedures. However, there are few such studies regarding abdominal angiography. In our institution, we performed abdominal angiography and intervention by the transradial arterial method in 42 cases using a 120-cm-long 4 Fr catheter and compared the results with the transfemoral or transbrachial arterial method and examined the usefulness of this technique. Puncture was successfully carried out in 42 cases, whereas failure occurred in one case, in which the transbrachial method was adopted because of weak pulse. Selective catheter insertion was successful in all cases, after the shape of the catheter had been improved. No serious or dangerous complications occurred during the examinations. In addition, many patients chose the radial arterial method for subsequent examinations on a questionnaire survey we gave patients on the day after we did abdominal angiography by the transradial arterial method. We consider that the transradial arterial method can be used generally in angiography and interventional angiography for abdominal diseases.