Cryoablation

Cryoablation
Intervention
ICD-9-CM	37.33, 37.34, 60.62
MeSH	D003452
[]

Cryoablation is a process that uses extreme cold (cryo) to destroy or damage tissue (ablation).

Cryoablation is used in a variety of clinical applications using hollow needles (cryoprobes) through which cooled, thermally conductive, fluids are circulated. Cryoprobes are inserted into or placed adjacent to tissue which is determined to be diseased in such a way that ablation will provide correction yielding benefit to the patient. When the probes are in place, the cryogenic freezing unit removes heat ("cools") from the tip of the probe and by extension from the surrounding tissues.

Ablation occurs in tissue that has been frozen by at least three mechanisms:

The most common application of cryoablation is to ablate solid tumors found in the lung, liver, breast, kidney and prostate. The use in prostate and renal cryoablation are the most common. Although sometimes applied through laparoscopic or open surgical approaches, most often cryoablation is performed percutaneously (through the skin and into the target tissue containing the tumor) by a medical specialist, such as an interventional radiologist.

Prostate cryoablation is moderately effective but, as with any prostate removal process, also can result in impotence. Prostate cryoablation is used in three patient categories:

Cryoablation has been explored as an alternative to radiofrequency ablation in the treatment of moderate to severe pain in people with metastatic bone disease. The area of tissue destruction created by this technique can be monitored more effectively by CT than RFA, a potential advantage when treating tumors adjacent to critical structures.

Cryoablation has similar outcomes to radiofrequency ablation when treating renal cell carcinoma.

Cryoablation for breast cancer is typically only possible for small tumors. Often surgery is used following cryoablation. As of 2014 more research is required before it can replace lumpectomy.

Another type of cryoablation is used to restore normal electrical conduction by freezing tissue or heart pathways that interfere with the normal distribution of the heart’s electrical impulses. Cryoablation is used in two types of intervention for the treatment of arrhythmias: (1) catheter-based procedures and (2) surgical operations.

...
Wikipedia