also known as percutaneous transluminal coronary angioplasty (PTCA), is a nonsurgical method of clearing coronary and other arteries blocked by atherosclerotic plaque, fibrous and fatty deposits on the walls of arteries. A catheter with a balloon-like tip is threaded up from the arm or groin through the artery until it reaches the blocked area.

The balloon is then inflated, flattening the plaque and increasing the diameter of the blood vessel opening. The arterial passage is thus widened or dilated. Balloon angioplasty has evolved to include direct coronary stenting in greater than 70% of angioplasty procedures to prevent recoil or abrupt closure of the artery post dilatation.