Percutaneous transluminal coronary angioplasty (PTCA ... | 合法醫療器材資訊網

PTCA, or percutaneous transluminal coronary angioplasty, is a minimally invasive procedure that opens blocked coronary arteries to improve blood flow to the heart muscle.

First, a local anesthesia numbs the groin area. Then, the doctor puts a needle into the femoral artery, the artery that runs down the leg. The doctor inserts a guide wire through the needle, removes the needle, and replaces it with an introducer, an instrument with two ports for inserting flexible devices. Then the original guide wire is replaced by a thinner wire. The doctor passes a long narrow tube called a diagnostic catheter over the new wire, through the introducer, and into the artery. Once its in, the doctor guides it to the aorta and removes the guide wire.

With the catheter at the opening of a coronary artery, the doctor injects dye and takes an X-ray.

If it shows a treatable block...