Lower Limb Peripheral Arterial Disease: Diagnosis and Management [Internet]

Excerpt

Lower limb peripheral arterial disease (known in the document as peripheral arterial disease, PAD) is a marker for an increased risk of potentially preventable cardiovascular events even when it is asymptomatic. If it becomes symptomatic it can lead to significant impairment of quality of life through limiting mobility and in its more severe manifestations may lead to severe pain, ulceration and gangrene and is the largest single cause of lower limb amputation in the UK.

The management of PAD of the lower limb remains controversial and treatments range from watchful waiting, through medical management, exercise training, endovascular treatment or surgical reconstruction. Rapid changes in diagnostic methods, endovascular treatments and vascular services, associated with the emergence of new subspecialities in surgery and vascular radiology, has resulted in considerable uncertainty and variation in practice. This guideline aims to resolve that uncertainty and variation.