Advances in catheter technology occur constantly as physicians seek better and safer ways to introduce catheters into the human body and manipulate them. Also, new forms of catheter-based therapies are being developed all the time. Most of these will fail to gain widespread acceptance, but among those that do, there is always the potential to substantially change the delivery of medical care in a given specialty. The most frequently cited example of this is the introduction of catheter-based coronary angioplasty and stenting. This procedure gain rapid acceptance and resulted in a significant decrease in the number of open-heart surgeries performed to treat coronary artery disease.

Researchers are currently testing a new device, called a "sonic flashlight," that helps physicians more accurately guide catheters. It uses a small, 2-inch ultrasound monitor that rests on the body, directly over the catheter, and projects its image onto a mirror. Currently, physicians use large ultrasound monitors to guide catheters, but have to look away from the patient in order to see the monitor. Researchers have further developed a portable sonic flashlight that could make it easier and more convenient to for physicians to perform the procedures. Both the stationary and portable devices need to be further evaluated and tested before being released for public use.

Researchers are also actively pursuing catheter-based heart valve replacement. Until recently, this procedure could only be performed through open-heart surgery. Today, however, researchers have successfully placed artificial heart valves using catheters in both the pulmonic and aortic valve positions, and catheter-based valve replacement is under development for the mitral valve. Catheters are also being developed that can perform repairs on defective valves. Although many of these procedures are still in the clinical trial phase, and have been performed only on the highest risk patients who could not undergo surgery, they promise to substantially alter the treatment of heart valve disease in the near future.