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Doctor Profile |
Pradeep Rajagopalan, MD
CRL Surgical & Radiology Associates
Pradeep Rajagopalan joined Martha Jefferson Hospital in 2000. After earning his undergraduate and medical degrees at Duke University, he completed a radiology residency and an interventional radiology fellowship at the University of North Carolina Hospitals. Despite dividing his academic history between Durham and Chapel Hill, his loyalty will always be with his beloved Blue Devils. He makes it to Cameron Indoor for as many games as possible during basketball season. When he's not watching basketball, Pradeep is often at the gym. He also enjoys traveling, exercising and seeking out good ethnic food with his wife, Emily. They plan to ring in the New Year by welcoming their first child.
Imaging of the blood vessels has always been an important tool in assessing hemodynamics and severity of lesions involving the cardiovascular system. Since the first arteriogram was successfully performed in 1929 to view an artery, the focus has been on trying to provide the highest-quality vascular image.
Initially, this was done primarily with the use of traditional X-ray technology with direct catheterization of the arterial system. Subsequently, ultrasound became a noninvasive modality to study the cardiovascular system. More recently, with advances in CT and MRI technology, these modalities are being used more and more to provide noninvasive detailed imaging of the vessels as well as 3-dimensional and even real-time imaging. As technology improves with regard to all of these modalities, the chances of diagnosing conditions such as atherosclerosis earlier become greater. The earlier we can detect these conditions, the more likely we may be able to prevent entities such as coronary artery disease, stroke, and myocardial infarction. As spatial and temporal resolution improves with regard to ultrasound, CT and MRI, these modalities will be used increasingly to identify patients who may need more invasive angiography for potential treatment.
For years, ultrasound has been the most common noninvasive modality to image the blood vessels. Advantages of ultrasound include its relatively low cost, lack of ionizing radiation and its ability to image vessels near the surface, including the carotid arteries or the arteries and veins of the lower extremities.