In 1953, which surgeon described a method for gaining arterial access using a double-wall needle and stylet?

• A. Sven-Ivar Seldinger
• B. Mason Sones
• C. Wilhelm Roentgen
• D. Charles Dotter

Answer: (A)

Gaining arterial access with a safe, minimally traumatic method that became the standard in interventional procedures is the idea here. In 1953, Sven-Ivar Seldinger described the technique using a hollow needle with an inner stylet (a double-wall needle) to puncture the vessel. A flexible guidewire is then passed through the needle into the arterial lumen, the needle is removed while the guidewire remains in place, and a catheter is advanced over the wire into the vessel. This sequence—puncture, guidewire placement, needle removal, and catheter advancement over the wire—reduced tissue injury and the need for multiple punctures, revolutionizing vascular access for angiography and interventions.

Other figures contributed to related areas: Mason Sones popularized selective coronary angiography with catheters, Wilhelm Roentgen discovered X-rays, and Charles Dotter advanced percutaneous techniques in interventional radiology, but none described this specific arterial access method.