percutaneous transluminal angioplasty (PTA), a procedure for dilating blood vessels in the treatment of peripheral artery disease. Under fluoroscopic guidance a balloon-tipped catheter is inserted into a stenotic artery and the balloon is inflated. The inflated balloon may dilate the artery by stretching its elastic fibers or by flattening accumulation of plaque. See also percutaneous transluminal coronary angioplasty.
