A procedure done to dilate narrowed areas in the heart’s major blood vessels. A small, balloon-tipped catheter is passed into the obstructed vessel, and the balloon is inflated to widen the vessel’s diameter.
A treatment for a stenosed (restricted) coronary artery. A balloon-tipped catheter is passed through an incision in the skin of the chest into the artery of the heart that has developed stenosis (narrowing). The balloon is aligned with the stenosed section and then inflated to dilate the coronary artery and allow the blood to flow more freely. In the UK, the aim is for this to be the standard emergency treatment for myocardial infarction due to coronary artery occlusion.
A percutaneous method of treating localized coronary artery narrowing without sternotomy. A special double-lumen catheter, designed so that a cylindrical balloon surrounds a portion of the vessel, is inserted through the skin into the right femoral artery. Repeated inflation and deflation of the balloon with pressure between 9 and 15 atmospheres (approximately 135 to 225 psi) dilates the narrowed vessel.
Coronary angioplasty, also known as balloon angioplasty, is a cardiac procedure performed to address arterial blockage caused by plaque buildup. During this intervention, a balloon catheter is employed to compress the plaque, resulting in the expansion of the narrowed vessel and restoration of blood flow.