balloon catheter

noun

: a catheter with an inflatable tip which can be expanded (as by air or water) especially to hold the catheter in place or to expand a partly closed or obstructed bodily passage, opening, or vessel (such as a coronary artery)

called also balloon-tipped catheter

see balloon angioplasty

Word History

First Known Use

1883, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler

The first known use of balloon catheter was in 1883

See more words from the same year

Cite this Entry

Style

“Balloon catheter.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/balloon%20catheter. Accessed 22 Nov. 2024.

Copy Citation

Medical Definition

balloon catheter

noun

variants also balloon-tipped catheter

: a catheter with an inflatable tip which can be expanded (as by air or water) especially to hold the catheter in place or to expand a partly closed or obstructed bodily passage, opening, or vessel (as a coronary artery) see balloon angioplasty, percutaneous transluminal angioplasty

Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.

Can you solve 4 words at once?

Can you solve 4 words at once?

Word of the Day

paroxysm

Listen to the pronunciation of paroxysm

See Definitions and Examples »

Get Word of the Day daily email!