Endurance and strength training have different benefits for people with peripheral arterial disease, but both improve quality of life.

Question: Do treadmill training and resistance training improve the functional performance of patients with peripheral arterial disease (PAD)? Design: Randomised, controlled trial with blinded outcome assessment and stratification for symptoms of intermittent claudication (IC). Setting: Tertiary hospital in the USA. Participants: Participants with an ankle brachial index of 0.95 or less were recruited from vascular clinics and the community. Key exclusion criteria were critical limb ischaemia, foot ulcers, amputation, inability to attend or perform the interventions, and usual exercise comparable to the study regimens. Randomisation of 156 participants allotted 51 to treadmill training, 52 to resistance training and 53 to a control group. Interventions: The treadmill group performed supervised treadmill exercise 3 times per week for 6 months. Participants aimed to increase to 40 minutes by week 8, after which the speed or grade of the treadmill was progressed. Participants with IC were encouraged to exercise to near maximal leg symptoms. Asymptomatic participants exercised at a perceived exertion of 12 to 14 on the Borg scale. The resistance group also performed supervised exercise 3 times per week for 6 months, Endurance and strength training have different benefits for people with peripheral arterial disease, but both improve quality of life