title: New triple-lumen balloon catheter for percutaneous (pulmonary) valvuloplasty.
abstract: Percutaneous transluminal balloon pulmonary valvuloplasty has been performed since 1982. In publications, the most critical problems mentioned are severe systemic hypotension and bradycardia due to stasis of blood flow. A triple-lumen balloon was developed to allow more rapid inflation and deflation and to preserve the preexistent forward blood flow during maximal inflation. Only a slight systemic hypotension and no bradycardia were seen in the first two patients with pulmonary valve stenosis treated with this type of balloon. Thus, the maximal inflation time is not a critical parameter, whereas with the former types of balloon, maximal inflation times were critical, and, if longer than 5 to 10 sec, severe systemic hypotension was registered. We conclude that the triple-lumen pulmonary valve-dilatation balloon catheter is superior to the single-lumen balloon catheter used up to now.
mesh_terms: D000800:Angioplasty, Balloon / Q000295:instrumentation*; D006328:Cardiac Catheterization / Q000295:instrumentation*; D004106:Dilatation / Q000295:instrumentation; D006801:Humans; D008722:Methods; D008875:Middle Aged; D011666:Pulmonary Valve Stenosis / Q000151:congenital / Q000601:surgery