Use of ABI to detect peripheral arterial disease in diabetes – A recommendation for primary care physicians

Abstract

Background: India is considered the diabetes capital of the world. As per current practice, most of the diabetes patients go to primary care physicians for their monitoring and follow up. One of the dreaded complications of long-term diabetes is peripheral arterial disease. Methods: A cross-sectional observational study was conducted in a diabetes workshop. Totally, 48 patients were selected who satisfied the inclusion criteria. All were subjected to ankle-brachial index measurement (ABI) and doppler ultrasound was done to assess patency of the lower extremity arteries. The results were compared. The ankle-brachial index of less than 0.99 was considered abnormal. Results: Out of a total of 48 included patients 26 patients had normal ABI and 22 patients were found to have abnormal ABI. Out of those with normal ABI, 2 patients had features of peripheral arterial disease proved by doppler, whereas 3 patients with abnormal ABI had no feature of peripheral arterial disease in doppler. MedCalc software was used for statistical comparison. Conclusion: In the selected diabetic population prevalence of peripheral arterial disease was found to be 56.25%. Measurement of ABI was found to be quite a sensitive and specific method for diagnosing peripheral arterial disease of diabetics.

Connections between Cognitive Impairment and Atrial Fibrillation in Patients with Diabetes Mellitus Type 2

“…The benefit of ABI measurement was evaluated in 85 participants, of which 40 had DM-2, and it was highlighted that this assessment was slightly less reliable in diabetic people than in those without [ 55 ]. In contrast, a study carried out on 48 patients with DM-2 evidenced reduced values of ABI in half of them, with the prevalence of PAD being approximately 56.25% in patients with DM-2 [ 56 ]. The assessment of IMT and ABI as parameters of vascular remodeling were also analyzed in connection with other diseases, even with some specific therapies [ 57 ].…”

Characterization of inflammatory profiles and endothelial dysfunction in diabetic limb arterial occlusion

“…Concomitant PAD in DM patients is defined as diabetic limb arterial occlusion (DLAO) as well (Hur et al 2018). Prevalence of PAD is 20-50% in diabetic populations, compared to 10-26% in non-diabetic populations (Mishra 2021;Stoberock et al 2021). DLAO patients are more susceptible to cardiovascular events, contributing to higher morbidity and mortality as well as an increased risk of lower extremity amputation (Hur et al 2018;Akalu and Birhan 2020).…”