Peripheral Vascular Disease a Silent Assassin:Rising Trend in State of Punjab

Peripheral vascular disease is a major macrovascular complication of diabetes mellitus. This study was done to determine the prevalence of peripheral arterial disease in type 2 diabetes mellitus using the ankle brachial pressure index. An 12 MHz doppler probe was used in the arms and legs to assess the ankle brachial index (ABI) in 200 type 2 diabetes mellitus patients aged more than 40 years. Thorough history of patients including age, smoking history, history of symptoms of peripheral arterial disease, complete physical examination and routine investigations were collected at the time of enrolment for all subjects. A ratio of the highest blood pressure from the posterior tibial or pedal arteries of each leg to the highest blood pressure from the brachial arteries < 0.9 was considered abnormal. Abnormal ABIs were found in 33% (66/200) patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus. 45.5% patients had ABI 0.80-0.89, 33.3% patients had ABI 0.50-0.79 and 21.2% patients had ABI <0.5 Prevalence of peripheral vascular disease in type 2 diabetes mellitus is on rise in northern India so there is need to educate the patients regarding risk factor modification and importance of early intervention to prevent future progression of peripheral vascular disease.