Suboptimal preventive practices in patients with carotid and peripheral vascular occlusive disease in a tertiary referral setting.

Background: Effective strategies for the prevention of adverse vascular events in patients with atherosclerotic vascular disease include smoking cessation, platelet inhibition, antihypertensives, hypoglycaemic and cholesterol lowering agents. The current literature suggests that these practices are suboptimal in patients with peripheral vascular disease (PVD). This study aims to examine and compare the use of preventive therapy in patients admitted for interventions related to peripheral and carotid atherosclerotic occlusive disease.