Table 1. Table of data extraction and characteristics of included studies.

Study, date, country	Study design, sampling, data collection and analysis methods	Participants, Age, Gender	Phenomenon of interest	Setting,	Geographical, Cultural	Key outcomes, Findings, authors conclusion
Galea et al[10] United Kingdom	Qualitative semi-structured in-depth individual face-to-face interviews: CSM+TPB. Framework analysis	Participants: n = 19 Gender:13M Age: mean 66 (range 44–79)y Disease duration: ≥2y = 10(53%); <2y = 9(47%) Past treatments: Revascularization = 5 (26%); SEP = 8(42%)	Experiences of and belief about illness and walking with IC	Patient home/ University facility	White: 12(63%) Ethnic minorities: 7(57%)	Walking is an overlooked self-management treatment Patient desired a tailored walking guidance Patient had varied outcome expectation from walking Patients lack specific instruction about walking (e.g. walking through pain) Patients had uncertainty about the appropriate walking intensity barriers
Harwood et al[11] United Kingdom	Qualitative semi-structured interview Thematic analysis	Participants: n = 25 Gender: 14(56%)M; Age: mean = 71, range = 44–79 Stable IC Patients who declined, withdrew from, or completed supervised exercise program.	Patients experience of diagnosis and treatment with a supervised exercise program	Patient home/ Hospital facility	Not documented	Theme and Subthemes Intermittent claudication -Understanding disease and risk factors -Effect on lifestyle and daily activities -Consultants provide the best medical therapy and advice Perception of exercise -preview experience with exercise -Present activity level -Exercise benefits Experience of exercise program -Class experience -Motivation for adherence to exercise program -Program repetition -Barrier to exercise class -Enjoyment to exercise
Hallin et al[12] Sweden	Mixed study (cross-sectional study); Sampling: Not clear; Semi-structured interview; Content analysis	Participants: n = 80 Age = 56-88y Gender = 47(59%)M Type of disease CAS; AAA; IC; CLI (n = 20 each) Treatment planned or already performed Conservative/ follow up(n = 17) Planned op or PTA (n = 21 Operated or PTA elective/Acute (n = 41) Not operated (n = 1)	Patients concerns and subjective effect of PAD on quality of life and life satisfaction	Clinic facility/Patient home	Swedish	Physical functioning Social functioning Sexual functioning Anxiety/concern Intellectual capacity Family concern Pain Factors related to surgery There is a need to incorporate disease specific questions to generic quality of life instruments and measurements of life satisfaction to fully understand how PAD affects individuals
Schorr et al[13] USA	Qualitative research; Purposive sampling; Semi-structured face-to-face interview and PAD symptom question; Content analysis	Participants: n = 38 Stage of disease: Not specified (Generic) Mean age: 67.58y; Race: Caucasian 89.95% Gender: 33M; 5F Age: 57.9% Older adults(≥65y): Education: 85% attending some collage or graduate school Employment: 63. 2% retired Marital status: 60.5% Married/living with partner	Symptoms experience of patients diagnosed with PAD	Hospital facility	Predominantly Caucasians; African Americans; Native Americans	Six themes: Symptom descriptors (Claudication and atypical); maintaining equilibrium; Temporal fluctuation; the role of exercise; Perceived impact on quality of life; Disease presence and treatment.
Johnstone[14] UK	Ethnography; Convenient sampling; One-on-one interview of couple; Framework analysis	Participants: n = 14 7 couples	Life experiences of patients with PAD and their carers	Patients home	Not documented	2 concepts: Acceptance and Adaptation 4 themes: The experience of pain; Consequence of impaired mobility; Loss of independence; Disease progress; Professional support.
Gibson and Kenrick[15] UK	Phenomenology; Convenient sampling; One-on-one interview & Grounded theory method	Participants: n = 9 Patients with PAD 3–18 post constructive surgery Gender: M = 6; F = 3 Age: (62-75years).	Patients experience of living with PAD; and how treatment affect individuals coping strategies	Patients home	English	4 themes: Pain; Someone else’s problem (patient hood, expectation, playing by the rules), Shrinking of horizons; Control, choice and changing outlook. Findings: Patients with PAD appear to experience powerlessness in relation to the direct effect of their condition as well as its treatment modalities. Conclusion: The acute style of management often led to unrealistic expectations from patients, giving rise to experience of powerlessness.
Egberg et al.[16] Sweden	Qualitative descriptive design, Purposive sampling; One-on-One interview Thematic analysis;	Participants: n = 15 Patients with PAD/IC awaiting visit or revisits to the vascular surgery Gender: M = 8; F = 7 Age: (64-81years)	Patients experiences of living with PAD/IC	Patients home, Researchers workplace, hospital	Swedish	6 themes: Experiencing discomfort in the legs; Moving around in a new way; Feeling inconvenient when forced to stop; Missing previous life; Incorporating IC in daily life; To lead a strenuous life. Findings: Living with IC has a major impact on daily life and demands adjusting to restricted life. Conclusion: Experience of living with IC depends on how active a patient is or wants to be, and understanding this experience is an important to complement treatment planning.
Gorely et al.[17] UK	Qualitative design; Purposive sampling; Focus group Thematic analysis	Participants: n = 24 Patients with PAD/IC recruited via screening vascular clinic letter Gender: M = 17; F = 7 Mean age: (71±8years)	Experiences, knowledge and beliefs of patients with IC.	Not documented	White British	2 themes: Uncertainly; Lack of support/empathy Findings: PAD/IC has significant impact on patients, including loss of activity and enjoyment. In addition, patients feel uncertain about the disease, and that medical professionals do not show empathy. Conclusions: Addressing the knowledge gaps and uncertainty around IC disease processes and walking will be key to providing behavior change in people with IC.
Treat-Jacobson et al.[18] USA	Grounded theory, Purposive sampling, Open-ended interview &Thematic analysis	Participants: n = 38 Patients of wide range of PAD severity Gender: M = 24; F = 14. Age: 44–83 (mean: 65±10.4) years	Effect of PAD on health related quality of life from the patients perspective	Facility outside hospital	American	7 themes: Delay in diagnosis and frustration in managing disease; Pain; Limitation in physical functioning; Limitation in social and role functioning, Compromise of self; Uncertainty and fear; Adaptation to the effect of the disease and demonstration of resiliency. Findings: In addition to physical limitation, living with PAD entails social and role limitations. The wider effects of PAD affect broad aspects of patients live. Conclusion: Patients with PAD experience significant physical, psychological, and emotional disabilities that are not easily assessed by available questionnaires.
Wann-Hassan & Wennick[19]	Inductive qualitative design; Purposive sampling; Focus group & Content analysis	Participants: n = 21 Patients with PAD who had undergone a vascular intervention during the preceding 6 months Gender: M = 9; F = 12 Age: (50-81years)	Patients experiences of PAD and how they communicate their knowledge about their illness and treatment	Hospital conference room	Swedish	4 categories: Describing the known and unknown; Conflicting feeling towards smoking; Feeling relieved yet uncertain; Consulting various sources of information. Findings: Patients with PAD navigate through uncertainty, beliefs and facts about their illness and treatment with palpable need of further knowledge of their condition and strategies for risk factor prevention. Conclusions: Following endovascular treatment, the amount of time spent with patients with PAD requires guidance in clinical practice to meet individuals’ need.
Wann-Hassan et al.[20] Sweden	Inductive qualitative design, Purposive sampling, One-on-One Semi-structured interview Content analysis	Participants: n = 24 PAD patients with IC awaiting intervention Gender: M = 12; F = 12 Age: (60-92years)	Patients experiences of living with PAD, and the influence on activity of daily living	Patients home	Swedish	3 themes: Being limited by the burden; Striving to relieve the burden; Accepting and adapting to the feeling of burden. Findings: Living with PAD and often entails major physical, social, emotional burden, leaving patients struggling for relief. Pain is a major feature. Conclusion: Structured education about PAD, including education about, and evaluation of pain pathology and management, exploring patient capacity is needed in managing people with PAD.
Wann-Hassan et al.[21] Sweden	Qualitative design, Convenience sampling, One-on-One interview Content analysis	Participants: n = 14 Patients with PAD 6 months, and 2½years after revascularization Gender: M = 9; F = 5 Age: (61-85years)	Long term experience of living with PAD and the recovery after revascularization.	Patients home	Swedish	3 themes: Becoming better but not cured; Recapturing control over life; Reappraising meaning in life Findings: The expectations of people with PAD about recovery and the benefits of revascularization were initially unrealistic, but over time following revascularization, they gradually become aware of the chronic disease nature of condition. Conclusion: The long-term experience of living with PAD means becoming aware of it chronic nature highlighting the importance of structured education as a complementary for patients with PAD.
Cunningham et al.[22] UK	Qualitative design, Convenience sampling, Semi-structured interview Thematic analysis	Participants: n = 20 Patients with PAD/IC and is between 6 months and 2years after revascularizations. Gender: M = 11; F = 9 Age: (mean 70.9±6.6)	Belief and walking behavior of patients with PAD/IC after vascular intervention	Not documented	Scottish	5 themes: Walking avoidance; Treatable condition; Causal belief; Perceived consequences; Surgeon patient communication Findings: People with PAD appear to have impaired and incoherent beliefs about PAD/IC, treatment, and health behavior, and therefore do not change PA behavior after diagnosis and treatment for IC. Conclusion: There is a gap between the beliefs of patients with PAD/IC about their condition and the recommendation to increase PA that may affect their PA behavior.
Lokin et al.[23] Netherlands	Qualitative design; Convenience stratified by gender; Semi-structured one-on-one interview; Thematic analysis	Participants: n = 19 Patients with IC from iliac obstructions who have undergone either percutaneous angioplasty (PTA) or supervised exercise therapy. Gender: M = 10; F = 9 Age: (Mean: 60.8; Range: 51-72y)	The disease understanding of patients with IC regarding etiology factor and systemic nature of their disease	Not documented	Dutch	2 themes: Etiology; Perception of the systematic nature of IC. Findings: Patients living with IC have poor disease understanding particularly the etiology and systemic nature of their problem and this may hinder lifestyle medication and shared decision making. Conclusion: A change of counselling strategies is needed to better effect lifestyle modification and decrease cardiovascular morbidity and mortality in patient with in patients with PAD/IC. This change may warrant additional role for health care practitioners who have more extensive contact with the patients.

Key: CSM (common sense model), TPB (theory of planned behaviour)