Patent ID: 7873404

Claim:
A method of conducting angiography and angioplasty, comprising the steps of: (a) inserting a guide wire into a patient's blood vessel; (b) placing a combination catheter over the guide wire, the combination catheter including at least two lumens, at least one inflatable angioplasty balloon, and at least one exit hole formed into a side wall of the catheter adjacent to the inflatable angioplasty balloon, (c) delivering contrast liquid into one lumen of the combination catheter and through the at least one exit hole and into the blood vessel, and performing angiography with the contrast liquid in the blood vessel, (d) diagnosing the resulting angiogram to determine blockage of the blood vessel to thus identify a lesion, (e) positioning the combination catheter such that the angioplasty balloon is located adjacent to the lesion in the patient's blood vessel, (f) inflating the angioplasty balloon against the blood vessel so as to perform angioplasty, (g) deflating said angioplasty balloon, (h) positioning the combination catheter so that the exit hole is in position to deliver contrast liquid appropriately for angiography, (i) repeating steps (c) and (d), and (j) when continued blockage is indicated by angiography in step (i), repeating steps (e) through (j), and when continued blockage is not indicated, withdrawing the combination catheter and the guide wire from the patient's blood vessel.