Intracardiac echocardiography--guided percutaneous mitral balloon valvuloplasty.

Percutaneous mitral balloon valvuloplasty (PMBV) was initially described by Inoue in 1984 as a novel percutaneous technique for the management of mitral stenosis. Intracardiac echocardiography was initially used in the 1980s but was not universally accepted due to its high-frequency transducers and problems with steerability and manipulation. In the 1990s technical improvements led to more generalized use in various structural interventional procedures. We present the case of a successful PMBV guided exclusively by ICE.