Table 1.
Baseline characteristics of patients with intermittent claudication referred for SET or treated by revascularization.
| Variable | SET |
Revascularization |
||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| n = 232 | n = 242 | |||
| Demographic data | ||||
| Age, years, mean (± SD) | 66 | (± 10.5) | 63 | (± 9.5) |
| Sex, female | 89 | 38.4% | 86 | 35.5% |
| Cardiovascular risk factors | ||||
| Hypertension | 182 | 78.4% | 177 | 73.1% |
| Hypercholesterolemia | 195 | 84.1% | 190 | 78.5% |
| Diabetes | 79 | 34.1% | 61 | 25.2% |
| Smoking | ||||
| Current | 107 | 47.6% | 137 | 57.8% |
| Former | 64 | 28.4% | 71 | 30.0% |
| Obesity | 38 | 16.4% | 32 | 13.2% |
| Chronic kidney disease | 55 | 23.7% | 53 | 21.9% |
| Comorbidities | ||||
| Cerebrovascular disease | 50 | 21.6% | 33 | 13.6% |
| Cardiac disease | 78 | 33.6% | 72 | 29.8% |
| Prior lower limb revascularization | 33 | 14.2% | 52 | 21.5% |
| Pulmonary disease | 46 | 19.8% | 60 | 24.8% |
| Neurological disease | 30 | 12.9% | 26 | 10.7% |
| Musculoskeletal disease | 54 | 23.2% | 31 | 12.8% |
| Lower limb osteoarthritis | 24 | 10.3% | 8 | 3.3% |
| Arthritis | 6 | 2.6% | 1 | 0.4% |
| Non-specific low back pain | 10 | 4.3% | 14 | 5.8% |
| Other | 14 | 6.0% | 8 | 3.3% |
| History of malignancy | 25 | 10.8% | 11 | 4.5% |
| PAD | ||||
| Duration of claudication, months, median (IQR) | 12 | (6–24) | 12 | (3–24) |
| Ankle–brachial index, median (IQR)a | ||||
| At rest | 0.72 | (0.60–0.86) | 0.71 | (0.59–0.85) |
| After exercise | 0.54 | (0.34–0.73) | 0.56 | (0.35–0.75) |
| Walking distance, m, median (IQR) | ||||
| Maximum | 260 | (140–488) | 220 | (120–380) |
| Pain free | 90 | (50–150) | 80 | (50–120) |
| Imaging | ||||
| No | 12 | 5.2% | 0 | 0% |
| Duplex | 15 | 6.5% | 3 | 1.2% |
| MRA | 22 | 9.5% | 26 | 10.7% |
| CTA | 179 | 77.2% | 212 | 87.6% |
| Angiography | 4 | 1.7% | 1 | 0.4% |
| Arterial lesion levelb | ||||
| Inflowc | 55 | 24% | 217 | 90% |
| Outflowd | 165 | 71% | 25 | 10% |
No statistical comparison between the SET and revascularization groups was made because treatment was based on patient and lesion characteristics.
Data represent the number of patients (n, %) unless indicated otherwise.
Missing data: < 5%, except for duration of claudication (30% in primary SET group and 14% in primary revascularization group), PFWD at baseline (14% and 10%), inflow and outflow level (5% in primary SET group).
Minimum value for right and left legs.
The predominant lesion of the symptomatic leg was scored for the SET group and the treated lesion was scored in the primary revascularization group.
Inflow lesions were defined as one or more significant stenoses in the aortoiliac segment and/or the common femoral artery.
Outflow lesions were defined as one or more significant stenoses in the superficial femoral artery, popliteal artery or infrapopliteal arteries.
CTA, computed tomography angiography; MRA, magnetic resonance angiography; PAD, peripheral artery disease; PFWD, pain free walking distance; SET, supervised exercise therapy.