Which describes the Szabo technique?

• A. A wire placed carefully under strut of an uninflated balloon to anchor; stent advanced over both wires across ostial lesion until advancement is stopped by anchor wire; deploy stent at low ATM, deflate balloon and remove anchor wire; redeploy balloon at high ATM to ensure correct apposition
• B. A wire placed under inflated balloon to anchor
• C. Deploy stent first then anchor
• D. Use only one wire and no balloon

Answer: (A)

The Szabo technique is a method to position a stent precisely at an ostial lesion by using an anchor wire to limit how far the stent can advance. A second guidewire is passed so that a small portion of it sits under the strut of an uninflated balloon positioned near the ostium. The stent is then advanced over both wires until the anchor wire catches on the strut, effectively locking the stent at the desired edge. The stent is deployed at a low inflation level to secure this position, the anchor wire is removed, and the balloon is reinflated at a higher pressure to ensure proper apposition of the stent to the vessel wall. This approach helps prevent unintended proximal or distal movement and minimizes protrusion into the ostium or branch, providing better ostial coverage.

Other approaches described—placing a wire under a balloon that’s already inflated, deploying the stent before anchoring, or using a single wire without a balloon—do not achieve the same controlled, edge-focused placement that the Szabo technique aims for.