Peripheral Artery Disease and Diabetes

PROGRAM OVERVIEW:

Diabetes patients tend to develop vascular disease, especially in the peripheral arteries in the feet and legs. Joining Andrew to discuss the connection between peripheral artery disease (PAD) and diabetes is Dr. Michael Conte. Dr. Conte is Chief of Vascular Surgery at UCSF Medical Center and helped lead the largest clinical trial conducted on peripheral artery disease, which is resulting in new guidelines and performance standards for treatment.

Dr. Conte believes peripheral artery disease is under-diagnosed and under-treated in diabetics and often not well treated when it is identified. He begins by talking about the risk factors associated with PAD and the signs and symptoms that lead to a PAD diagnosis. Early diagnosis is key to saving limbs from amputation. He goes on to discuss the various approaches to treatment for PAD and the advantages to seeking care from a specialist and multidisciplinary team.

Dr. Conte closes by speaking about the latest research and encouraging words. To quote Dr. Conte, “I think I would like to leave off with that message that this is a disease whose complications can often be prevented by early recognition and the appropriate use of aggressive strategies in a timely fashion. Many patients do not require aggressive or invasive procedures, but when they do cross that threshold then picking the right procedure and doing it early is the best way to avoid the endpoints that we don’t want to see.” Listen to this program to learn more about preventing and treating peripheral artery disease.