Which statement best describes a non-compliant balloon used in angioplasty?

• A. It expands gradually as pressure increases until it reaches a maximum size and stops.
• B. It expands quickly with small pressure increases.
• C. It grows beyond its rated size with higher pressure.
• D. It cannot be inflated at all.

Answer: (A)

Noncompliant balloons are designed to reach a specific diameter and then resist further expansion as pressure increases. As you inflate, the balloon enlarges to its predetermined size and doesn’t significantly grow beyond that even with higher pressures. This behavior makes it ideal for precise dilation, especially in calcified or tight lesions, where you want to avoid over-expanding the vessel. The option describing expansion to a maximum size and then stopping exactly captures this characteristic. Other descriptions—expanding quickly with small pressure changes, growing beyond its rated size with more pressure, or being impossible to inflate—do not match how noncompliant balloons behave.