Angioplasty, also known as balloon angioplasty or Percutaneous Transluminal Coronary Angioplasty (PTCA), is a minimally invasive procedure performed by an interventional cardiologist.  A specially designed catheter with a small balloon tip is guided to the point of narrowing in the artery. Once in place, the balloon is inflated which compresses the fatty substance called plaque against the artery wall and stretches the artery open to increase blood flow to the heart.