Radiofrequency ablation is a minimally invasive procedure that uses a high-frequency alternating electrical current, delivered through a needle electrode positioned inside the target tissue, to generate heat and destroy the surrounding cells. It grew out of electrosurgical techniques developed through the twentieth century and became a widely used oncologic tool from the 1990s onward, applied chiefly to small tumors of the liver, kidney and lung in patients who are not good candidates for surgical removal, and it is also used outside oncology to treat certain cardiac arrhythmias and some forms of chronic pain by disabling the specific nerve or tissue responsible. Because the procedure is guided by imaging such as ultrasound or CT and performed through a needle rather than an open incision, it typically involves a shorter recovery than equivalent open surgery, though the treated area is usually smaller than what surgical removal can address.
Facts
Origin YearYear the procedure was first introduced as a medical treatment, for osteoid osteomas; not necessarily the year the RF-ablation principle itself was devised. Connections
Sources
1. Wikipedia
Wikipedia contributors, Wikimedia Foundationhttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Radiofrequency_ablation, lead sectionQuote, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Radiofrequency_ablation, lead section
Radiofrequency ablation (RFA) is a medical procedure in which heat generated from medium frequency alternating current is used to selectively destroy dysfunctional tissue such as malfunctioning parts in the electrical conduction system of the heart, tumors, and sensory nerves.
2. Wikipedia: Radiofrequency Ablation
Wikimedia FoundationTumors sectionQuote, Tumors section
Since the procedure was first introduced for the treatment of osteoid osteomas in the 1990s
Frequently Asked Questions
When did radiofrequency ablation come into medical use?
It was first introduced in the 1990s for osteoid osteomas.
The atlas dates the treatment to the 1990s. Wikipedia's account says the procedure was first introduced for the treatment of osteoid osteomas in the 1990s, and it became a widely used oncologic tool from that decade onward. It grew out of electrosurgical techniques developed through the twentieth century, and it is now applied to small tumors of the liver, kidney and lung and to certain cardiac arrhythmias.
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