Diagnosis
This inexpensive bedside test compares ankle and brachial systolic pressures.
What is the ankle-brachial index (ABI)?
This class of medication is indicated for all patients with PAD regardless of baseline LDL cholesterol level.
What is a high-intensity statin?
This population has disproportionately higher PAD prevalence, amputation rates, and mortality.
Who are Black Americans?
Black Americans in particular bear a disproportionate share of disease burden in PAD, with an estimated lifetime prevalence of nearly 30% for Black men and 28% for Black women compared to 19% for white men and women (Criqui, 2021; Minami, 2021). Rates for Hispanic and Native American populations are also elevated.
Blood-pressure goal for patients with peripheral artery disease.
What is 130/80 mm Hg?
An ABI ≤ this value is diagnostic of PAD.
What is 0.90?
Sensitivity of 69-79% and specificity of 83-99% compared to invasive angiography (Gornick, 2024; Minami, 2021).
This phosphodiesterase III inhibitor, can be added for patients with intermittent claudication who do not respond adequately to exercise therapy and risk factor modification alone.
What is Cilostazol?
This lifestyle factor is the strongest modifiable risk factor for PAD progression.
What is smoking?
This is the most common symptom of PAD, with exertional leg pain relieved by rest.
What is intermittent claudication?
This is a severe subset of PAD characterized by ischemic rest pain, nonhealing wounds/ulcers, or gangrene with symptoms present for more than two weeks. This condition is responsible for most major limb amputation related to PAD.
What is CLTI (Chronic limb-threatening ischemia?)
This therapy is the most effective nonpharmacologic treatment to improve walking distance.
What is supervised exercise therapy?
In adults ≥80 years, PAD prevalence approaches this percentage.
What is about 20%?
Unlike classic claudication, these TYPE of symptoms—heaviness, fatigue, or numbness—are equally common in PAD.
What are atypical leg symptoms?
This alternative test is preferred when ABI is falsely elevated.
What is the toe-brachial index (TBI)?
For AVERAGE risk patients, this medication is preferred over aspirin due to a lower risk of gastrointestinal bleeding.
What is clopidogrel?
Approximately this percentage of adults ≥40 years have PAD in the U.S.
What is 8%?
In PAD patients with diabetes, this drug class reduces cardiovascular events and may improve walking distance.
What are GLP-1 receptor agonists?
In patients with these TWO conditions, noncompressible or calcified arteries may result in a falsely elevated ABI > 1.40.
What is long standing Diabetes and/or ESRD?
In high-risk PAD, this combination therapy reduces both MACE and limb events.
What is low-dose rivaroxaban plus aspirin?
Low-dose rivaroxaban (2.5mg twice daily) and aspirin (81mg daily).
Compared to non-Hispanic White patients, this outcome occurs about four times more often in Black patients with PAD.
What is major limb amputation?
Name of the double-blind RCT published in The Lancet in 2025 which showed that semaglutide increased walking distance in patients with symptomatic PAD and diabetes after 1-year follow up.
What is the STRIDE trial?