In balloon angioplasty, the surgeon passes a tiny deflated balloon through the catheter to the site of the vessel obstruction. The balloon is inflated to compress the plaque against the walls of the artery, flattening it out so that blood can once again flow through the blood vessel freely. In one version of a procedure known as atherectomy , a tiny cutter spinning at 2,500 rpm removes plaque fragments from the arterial walls. Coronary stents are expandable mesh tubes deployed by angioplasty catheters at the sites of obstructions to maintain the free flow of blood through the vessel after angioplasty. The stent pushes against the wall of the artery to keep it open.
Stent use is associated with lower rates of reocclusion than with standard angioplasty.