A catheter-based procedure used to remove plaque from arteries, most frequently the coronary arteries, atherectomy may be performed prior to other catheter-based techniques such as balloon angioplasty and stenting.

For the atherectomy procedure, the physician introduces a long, thin tube (catheter) into the blocked arteries. Equipped with special devices that remove some of the fatty plaque from the inside of the blocked arteries, atherectomy may be accomplished with either a laser catheter that vaporizes the plaque or a rotating shaver catheter that uses a revolving burr to break up the plaque.