To walk or not to walk: That is the question

Intermittent claudication (IC) is the most common symptom of peripheral artery disease, affecting>10 million people in the United States alone. Along with the quantifiable medical morbidities, IC takes a significant toll on the quality of life of a patient and is the most common reason these patients present to vascular surgeons.1 The IC patient mantra taught to our trainee vascular surgeons is that one should “avoid procedures on patients with intermittent claudication.” The reasoning for this advice is sound: access issues, embolization, dissection, and a myriad of other complications can arise when treating “just” claudication symptoms, which can potentially result in amputation or, even, death in the worst of scenarios.
Source: Journal of Vascular Surgery - Category: Surgery Authors: Tags: Invited commentary Source Type: research