HAMMOND — North Oaks Health Medical Center, located in Hammond, will begin offering neurointerventional radiology care.

The new program brings advanced stroke and neurovascular care to residents in Livingston, St. Helena, St. Tammany, Tangipahoa and Washington parishes, giving local access to specialized procedures that can treat life-threatening blockages. 

In North Oaks' interventional radiology suite, physicians use advanced biplane imaging to get detailed views of the brain's blood vessels, allowing them to guide small instruments to diagnose and treat complex neurovascular conditions without open surgery.

The new program allows for mechanical thrombectomy, which is a procedure that removes blood clots blocking blood flow to the brain during an acute ischemic stroke, which is the most common type of stroke.

The procedure can rapidly restore blood flow, limiting permanent brain damage and improving chances of recovery.