PTCA
Medical abbreviation · Cardiology
| Stands for | Percutaneous transluminal coronary angioplasty |
|---|---|
| Categories | Medical |
PTCA stands for Percutaneous transluminal coronary angioplasty, a cardiology abbreviation.
Balloon angioplasty of a coronary artery, in which a balloon-tipped catheter is inflated at the narrowing to compress plaque and widen the lumen. The term dates from before stents and now refers mainly to the balloon step of a PCI or to older procedures in medical histories.
Example: Remote history of PTCA to the LAD in 1994, no interventions since.
Usage notes
Andreas Grüntzig performed the first coronary balloon angioplasty in a conscious patient in Zurich in 1977. Balloon-only angioplasty had high rates of abrupt vessel closure and restenosis, which led to bare-metal stents in the 1990s and drug-eluting stents in the 2000s. Insurers and older records still use the term.
Related abbreviations
More cardiology abbreviations
- POBA – Plain old balloon angioplasty
- POTS – Postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome
- PPM – Permanent pacemaker
- PS – Pulmonic stenosis
- PSVT – Paroxysmal supraventricular tachycardia
- PTA – Percutaneous transluminal angioplasty
- PTS – Post-thrombotic syndrome
- PVC – Premature ventricular contraction
- PVD – Peripheral vascular disease
- PVI – Pulmonary vein isolation
- PVR – Pulmonary vascular resistance
- QRS – QRS complex
See all 229 cardiology abbreviations →
This entry is for general education and is not medical advice. Abbreviation use varies between institutions; always confirm in context.