What does crossability refer to in catheter performance?

• A. Ability of catheter tip following wire to cross a lesion
• B. How easily the catheter can be pushed forward without prolapsing
• C. How small the tip of the balloon catheter is
• D. Amount of pressure that can be safely applied without rupturing balloon

Answer: (A)

Crossability is about the catheter’s ability to cross a lesion by following the guidewire. In PCI, you first get a wire across the blockage, then you need the catheter to advance over that wire and reach beyond the lesion so devices can be delivered. A catheter with good crossability will track along the wire and cross tight or calcified lesions, even in tortuous vessels, enabling successful intervention. This depends on the catheter’s tip design, lubricity, and the stiffness and support it can provide to stay on the wire’s path.

That’s why the option describing the catheter tip’s ability to follow the wire and cross a lesion best captures crossability. Other aspects—how easily the catheter pushes forward without prolapsing (pushability), how small the tip is (tip size), or the balloon’s safe inflation pressure (burst pressure)—describe different performance attributes, not crossability.