A program
of supervised exercise for 30 minutes, twice a week, was as effective as
endovascular revascularization( passing a catheter balloon through the vessel
to improve blood flow) in terms of
functional outcomes and quality of life in patients with intermittent
claudication, according to a randomized controlled study reported at the In addition, the improvement seen
with both interventions was sustained out to seven years
In his trial, 150 patients with intermittent claudication were
randomized to either supervised exercise
therapy(SET), which involved walking on a treadmill for 30 minutes twice a week
(n=75), or endovascular revascularization (n=75). Baseline characteristics of
the patients were similar, he noted. Patients in both groups were advised to
walk at home as much as possible.
Dr Farzin Fakhry, one of the authors of this paper said that “ the one- and seven-year results indicate that SET and endovascular
revascularization were equally effective in improving functional performance
and quality of life,". The study had 36 patients in the exercise group and
47 in the revascularization group who were available for the longer follow-up
of seven years, he noted.
The number
of patients with one or more secondary interventions was higher in the SET group
(32 patients underwent at least one secondary intervention compared with 17 in
the endovascular-revascularization group; p=0.01), although the average number
of secondary interventions did not differ between the groups (2.0 in the SET
group vs 2.8 in the revascularization group [p=0.10]). Two patients in the
exercise group underwent minor amputation, and three in the revascularization
group had a major amputation.
"The
study supports the use of a SET-first treatment regimen in the care of patients
with intermittent claudication," Fakhry concluded.
Exercise as Good as Revascularization in
PAD. Medscape. Nov 12, 2012.
No comments:
Post a Comment