Specialized balloons in percutaneous coronary intervention: Cutting, scoring, gliding, and drug-eluting balloons

Balloon angioplasty was the only available treatment in the early days of percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI). It is an integral part of interventional cardiology in the current era. Lesion preparation by predilation is vital for allowing stent delivery to severely narrowed and calcified lesions. This is particularly important in the current era of bioresorbable vascular scaffolds (BVS) which require meticulous lesion preparation before implantation. A number of specialized balloons such as cutting balloons and scoring balloons have been developed to facilitate lesion preparation. This chapter provides an overview of specialty balloons currently used in the field of interventional cardiology. Drug-eluting balloons, often referred to as drug-coated balloons, were designed to facilitate local delivery of anti-restenotic drugs. This specialized balloon catheter is designed to address the protrusion of stent struts to the aorta when a stent is placed in an aorto-ostial lesion.