A Study of Prevalence of Peripheral Arterial Disease in Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus Patients in a Teaching Hospital.

Introduction: Diabetes mellitus is a major health problem in India as also the world. Peripheral arterial disease (PAD) is a known complication of diabetes which is relatively less commonly studied in comparison to other complications. The present study was undertaken to study the prevalence of PAD in diabetic patients in a teaching hospital.
Materials and Methods: 200 type 2 diabetic patients from indoor as well as outdoor of a teaching hospital were included in the study. Ankle brachial pressure index was used to assess PAD. ABPI values of 0.9 or less were taken as indicative of PAD.
Results: Out of 200 patients 72(36%) had evidence of PAD. There was a significant association between PAD and duration of diabetes, waist circumference, hypertension and microvascular complications.
Conclusion: The prevalence of PAD in Type 2 diabetics was found to be 36% in our study. Screening for PAD should be done in all diabetic patients to detect this complication early.
(© Journal of the Association of Physicians of India 2011.)