BACKGROUND Different generic quality of life instruments such as the Nottingham Health Profile (NHP) and the Short Form 36 Health Survey (SF-36) have revealed conflicting results in patients with chronic lower limb ischaemia in psychometric attributes in short-term evaluations. The aim of this study was to compare the NHP and the SF-36 regarding internal consistency reliability, validity, respo...

Intermittent claudication, a common symptom of peripheral arterial disease, results in insufficient blood flow and oxygen supply to lower extremity muscles. Compared to men, women with peripheral arterial disease have a higher rate of mobility loss with peripheral arterial disease due to poorer lower extremity functioning. This study evaluates the effect of supervised pain-free treadmill exerci...

BACKGROUND Bilirubin has antioxidative and cytoprotective properties. Low plasma concentrations of bilirubin are reportedly associated with the development of coronary and cerebrovascular disease, and bilirubin concentrations are strongly correlated with the enzyme activity of the hepatic uridine diphosphate glucuronosyltransferase (UGT1A1). The activity of UGT1A1 is influenced by a TA-repeat p...

OBJECTIVES The aim of this work was to develop a MRI method to determine arterial flow reserve in patients with intermittent claudication and to investigate whether this method can discriminate between patients and healthy control subjects. METHODS Ten consecutive patients with intermittent claudication and 10 healthy control subjects were included. All subjects underwent vector cardiography ...

Intermittent claudication is a serious symptom in patients with peripheral arterial disease, and severely limits activities of daily living. Conservative treatment (optimal medical therapy and exercise rehabilitation programs) and revascularization procedures (endovascular treatment [EVT] or open bypass surgery) can relieve intermittent claudication. Among these treatment options, EVT has devel...

BACKGROUND The Walking Impairment Questionnaire (WIQ) measures walking ability in daily life in patients with peripheral arterial disease causing intermittent claudication. We investigated the efficacy of sarpogrelate, a 5-HT2A receptor antagonist, in improving walking ability, as measured using new Japanese version of the WIQ. PATIENTS AND METHODS A nationwide multicenter study was conducted...

Background—Central obesity is associated with peripheral arterial disease, suggesting that ectopic fat depots may be associated with localized diseases of the aorta and lower-extremity arteries. We hypothesized that persons with greater amounts of periaortic fat are more likely to have clinical PAD and a low ankle-brachial index. Methods and Results—We quantified periaortic fat surrounding the ...

BACKGROUND Intermittent claudication (IC) is a debilitating condition that mostly affects elderly people. IC is manifested by a decrease in ambulatory function. Individuals with IC present with motor and sensory nerve dysfunction in the lower extremities, which may lead to deficits in balance. OBJECTIVE This study aimed to measure postural control and isokinetic muscle function in individuals...

Whether symptomatic or not, peripheral arterial disease (PAD), atherosclerosis in the arteries of the lower extremities, is a common disorder in the general population. The prevalence increases with age and under the influence of vascular risk factors. The most classic symptomatic expression of PAD is intermittent claudication. However, the majority of patients with PAD is asymptomatic or has l...

Peripheral arterial disease (PAD) is a chronic, progressive disease with significant cardiovascular risk. Symptoms include pain in leg muscles on walking, relieved by rest (intermittent claudication). Treatment aims to maintain or improve quality of life (QoL) by minimising ischaemic symptoms and preventing progression to vascular occlusion. Management strategies include exercise-based interven...