Effects of a person-centred, nurse-led follow-up programme on adherence to prescribed medication among patients surgically treated for intermittent claudication: randomized clinical trial.

Background: Management of intermittent claudication should include secondary prevention to reduce the risk of cardiocerebrovascular disease. Patient adherence to secondary prevention is a challenge. The aim of this study was to investigate whether a person-centred, nurse-led follow-up programme could improve adherence to medication compared with standard care.

Open Repair of Aneurysms of the Thoracoabdominal Aorta.

Background Open surgical repair of aneurysms in the descending and thoracoabdominal aorta remains the dominating treatment of choice at many institutions worldwide. Patients treated with open repair most probably differ from endovascularly treated patients. With the present distribution of procedures performed for thoracoabdominal aortic aneurysms (TAAA), one cannot foresee any randomized controlled trial within the field.

Risk factors for poor collateral development in claudication.

The objective of this retrospective, cross-sectional study was to determine risk factors for poor collateral development in patients with claudication. The authors listed all patients with calf claudication who had undergone angiography in this hospital between 1999 and 2001 and extracted those with superficial femoral artery (SFA) occlusion, a popliteal artery without major lesions, and at least 1 patent calf artery. Forty-five patients met the criteria, and concomitant disease and claudication characteristics, ankle/brachial index (ABI) and number of outflow vessels were recorded.

Vascular endothelial cell growth factor and fibroblast growth factor 2 expression in patients with critical limb ischemia.

Background: For patients with critical limb ischemia (CLI), there is a great need for alternative treatment strategies. One option is therapeutic angiogenesis by administration of vascular growth factors. The lack of convincing clinical data supporting this strategy may be due to the ignorance of endogenous angiogenic processes in CLI.

Arteriogenesis in peripheral arterial disease.

Lower extremity peripheral arterial disease (PAD) most frequently presents with lower limb pain on walking--intermittent claudication. As the disease progresses the patient might suffer from rest pain and/or ischemic ulceration--critical limb ischemia (CLI). The management of patients with PAD consists of life-style modifications and pharmacotherapy addressing the risk factors to minimize the risk for disease progression and mortality in myocardial infarction and stroke.