Vascular and Interventional Radiology

The department provides vascular and interventional radiology services for Rush University Medical Center (Downtown Chicago) and Rush Oak Park Hospital (ROPH), while also accepting tertiary and quaternary referrals from Rush Copley Medical Center and numerous medical centers across Illinois and the broader Midwest.

Rush IR is committed to delivering state-of-the-art, clinically comprehensive care. Although we serve as a primary consultation service for inpatient and outpatient referring physicians, we also directly admit patients to our service, including management in standard hospital units and the surgical ICU. We maintain an active wound care clinic at ROPH and operate a robust outpatient clinic downtown for primary consultations and longitudinal follow-up care.

Academic and Research Mission

Faculty are actively engaged in scholarly activity and clinical research. The department sponsors trainees whose work is regularly accepted at national and international scientific meetings, including SIR, GEST, ISET, VIVA, APSCVIR, PAIRS and other major conferences.

We participate in multiple industry- and non-industry-sponsored clinical trials, including NIH-funded multicenter randomized controlled trials and national registries. Trainees interested in research development and IRB navigation are provided substantial mentorship and hands-on experience.

Clinical Scope and Areas of Expertise

Rush IR delivers multidisciplinary, evidence-based, and innovative procedural care across the full spectrum of vascular and interventional radiology. We routinely perform complex innovative cases that has never been performed in any other institutions.  Percutaneous femoral-femoral venous bypass, percutaneous ilio-femoral arterial bypass, percutaneous meso-caval, caverno-caval and splenorenal shunts are some of these unique procedures.

Oncology

• Image-guided biopsy
• Tumor ablation (Microwave, Cryoablation, Irreversible Electroporation)
• Y-90 radioembolization
• Chemoembolization
• Bland embolization

Arterial and Aortic Disease

• Endovascular aortic repair (EVAR, TEVAR, TAMBE)
• Complex post EVAR/TEVAR Endoleak management
• Peripheral arterial disease (PAD) and critical limb ischemia (CLI)
• Advanced recanalization techniques (including SAFARI)
• Visceral aneurysm and pseudoaneurysm management

Venous Thromboembolic Disease

• Acute and chronic deep venous thrombosis (DVT) intervention
• Pulmonary embolism (PE) management
• Inferior vena cava (IVC) filter placement and retrieval
• Superficial and deep venous reflux disease

Hemodialysis Access

• Endovascular AV fistula (EndoAVF) creation
• Fistulogram and declot procedures
• Central venous recanalization
• HeRO graft placement

Pain and Musculoskeletal Interventions

• Vertebroplasty and kyphoplasty
• Nerve block, ablation, and neurolysis
• Diagnostic and therapeutic joint injections

Transplant and Portal Hypertension

• Transjugular intrahepatic portosystemic shunt (TIPS)
• BRTO/PARTO
• Pre- and peri-operative transplant management (kidney, liver, pancreas)

Enteral Access and Hepatobiliary Disease

• Gastrostomy, gastrojejunostomy, and jejunostomy placement
• Management of obstructive cholangiopathy
• Cholecystitis and cholelithiasis management

Genitourinary Interventions

• Nephrostomy and nephroureteral catheter placement
• Suprapubic catheter placement
• Ureteral stricture management

Men’s Health

• Varicocele embolization
• Prostate artery embolization
• High-flow priapism management

Women’s Health

• Fallopian tube recanalization
• Uterine fibroid embolization
• Pelvic venous congestion treatment

Training Sites

• Rush University Medical Center (Downtown Chicago)

  A tertiary care academic medical center ranked #19 nationally by U.S. News & World Report. VIR residents spend the majority of their training at this flagship facility.

• Rush Oak Park Hospital (ROPH)

  Located approximately 8 miles west of downtown Chicago, this satellite hospital is fully staffed by the Rush IR faculty. Residents and fellows rotate here at designated intervals throughout training

• Rubschlager Oncology and Neurosciences Center

  A state-of-the-art facility connected to the main campus via skybridge, equipped with advanced radiologic and procedural technology. This center enhances multidisciplinary oncology and neuroscience collaboration.

• Rush Copley Medical Center

  Located in Aurora, Illinois. While trainees do not routinely rotate here, patients are frequently transferred to downtown Rush for advanced IR care.

• Rush MD Anderson Cancer Center

  Rush has partnered with MD Anderson Cancer Center to provide comprehensive oncologic services within the Chicago region.

Training Programs

Our mission is to provide comprehensive, clinically immersive vascular and interventional radiology training. We aim to graduate interventional radiologists who demonstrate:

• Superior clinical judgment
• Advanced technical proficiency
• Independent procedural capability
• Academic and research literacy
• Multidisciplinary leadership

Our program is high-volume and clinically rigorous. Trainees who are motivated, disciplined, and eager to excel will gain broad procedural exposure, extensive clinical responsibility, and meaningful academic mentorship.

We welcome applicants who are prepared to work hard and contribute meaningfully to an innovative and expanding academic IR department.

We currently offer the following vascular and interventional radiology (VIR) training programs: