DrNB Interventional Radiology
Direct answer
DrNB Interventional Radiology is the National Board's doctoral residency in minimally invasive, image-guided treatment — stenting arteries, embolising bleeding vessels, draining abscesses and delivering cancer therapy through a needle-tip. The three-year programme belongs to NBEMS-accredited hospitals and follows MD or DNB Radiodiagnosis, the feeder recognised by the NEET-SS groups; NEET-SS is the entry examination, with INI-SS for the institutes. The DNB signature is unmistakable: national accreditation, thesis work and a centrally conducted final. It is the speciality where a radiologist stops merely reporting disease and starts treating it.
Course structure and curriculum
- Catheter and guidewire fundamentals, vascular access and periprocedural anticoagulation.
- Diagnostic angiography across vascular beds.
- Angioplasty and stenting: peripheral, carotid, renal and aorto-iliac territory.
- Embolisation for bleeding, uterine fibroids and tumour supply.
- Stroke intervention: mechanical thrombectomy and the time-critical pathway around it.
- Thrombolysis and thrombectomy for deep vein and portal vein thrombosis.
- Hepatobiliary work: TIPS, biliary drainage and stenting.
- Oncologic intervention: transarterial chemoembolisation, radioembolisation and tumour ablation.
- Venous interventions including filter placement and central venous recanalisation.
- Genitourinary procedures: nephrostomy, ureteric stenting and prostate interventions.
- Non-vascular technique: image-guided biopsy, abscess drainage and fiducial placement.
- Cone-beam CT interpretation, radiation safety and dose governance, and thesis research.
Entrance examinations
Entrance rests on NEET-SS, the NBEMS computer-based examination: 150 questions in a 150-minute window, marked plus four and minus one. The syllabus is the feeder MD's at exit standard, so radiodiagnosis — all modalities and all systems — is the battleground. Interventional radiology seats are placed in one of the NEET-SS groups; radiodiagnosis graduates mapped to the group proceed to Medical Counselling Committee counselling, where accredited-hospital DrNB seats are allotted. INI-SS, held by AIIMS New Delhi, covers the institutes' own courses. As procedural volume differs sharply between hospitals, candidates should weigh unit caselogs while filling preferences.
Examinations during and after the course
The residency follows the DNB examination culture — periodic assessment, procedure logbooks, thesis acceptance and then the board's final theory and practical with viva. Candidates who clear comfortably practise angiographic anatomy recall, device-selection logic, dose maths and complication drills, and rehearse defending case management across fluoroscopy, CT and ultrasound guidance.
Career pathways after DrNB Interventional Radiology
Interventional radiologists are hired by stroke-ready hospitals, cancer centres, transplant programmes and vascular institutes, and hybrid OT expansion is pulling them into smaller cities. Fellowships in neurointervention, peripheral vascular work or interventional oncology build depth. DM-equivalent standing supports professorial roles, and device-development consulting is a realistic sideline for experienced hands.
Preparation with PrepElephant
PrepElephant helps radiodiagnosis postgraduates target NEET-SS through previous-year papers, a modality-wise radiology question bank and full mocks engineered to the official timing and penalty. Revision tools keep image-heavy topics circulating. Free website guides cover feeder eligibility and counselling.
Related entrance examinations
Frequently asked questions
How long is DrNB Interventional Radiology?
Three years of accredited residency after the feeder degree.
Who is eligible to sit for these seats?
MD or DNB Radiodiagnosis graduates, as recognised by the current NEET-SS group framework.
Which examination admits candidates?
NEET-SS for DrNB seats; INI-SS for courses at the national institutes.
Is DrNB Interventional Radiology equivalent to a DM?
Yes — it holds the same three-year super-speciality standing as university DM programmes in the interventional radiology family.
What scope does interventional radiology carry?
Explosive — stroke thrombectomy networks, cancer ablation, fibroid embolisation and peripheral vascular disease are all pushing demand beyond current supply.
Practise this in the PrepElephant app
Question banks, previous-year questions, mock tests and revision tools — for DrNB Interventional Radiology. Free to start.