High Pressure Balloon Catheter Reduces Angioplasty Times

A novel quick-inflate balloon catheter allows for greater flexibility in percutaneous transluminal angioplasty (PTA) procedures, treating the full range of blockages by functioning as both a high- and low-pressure balloon.

The Vector PTA balloon catheter is designed to keep blood vessels open during hemodialysis procedures by applying up to 30 atmospheres of pressure, thus offering greater flexibility in and helping to reduce surgery times. Radiopaque striping allows the device to show up under X-ray, eliminating the need for a viscous contrast media to visualize it. Instead, clinicians can apply low-viscosity saline, cutting inflation and deflation times by 50%, and reducing patient exposure to radiation. Advanced catheter shaft technology is applied to improve catheter tracking and handling.

The Vector PTA balloon catheters are available in 28 sizes for treating vascular narrowing, lesions, and blockages range from short and focal to long and diffuse. Using the high pressure balloon catheters helps treat the full range of blockages, saving the physician and patient from the difficulties of initiating the procedure with a low-pressure balloon only to find out during the procedure that a high-pressure balloon is also necessary. The Vector PTA balloon catheter is a product of r4 Vascular (Maple Grove, MN, USA), and has been approved by the US Food and drug Administration (FDA).

While some lesions can be treated with basic low- pressure balloon catheters rated between 10 and 20 atmospheres, other blockages may require advanced high-pressure balloons rated up to 30 atmospheres. The high-pressure PTA balloons are used to keep hemodialysis access sites open for dialysis treatments, to restore blood flow in the legs, to dilate narrowing in renal arteries, and dilate lesions in other vessels throughout the body. The majority of PTA procedures are performed under X-ray fluoroscopic guidance.

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