Prevalence and Risk Factors of Peripheral Vascular Disease in a Selected South Indian Population

Abstract

RESULTS — The prevalence rates of PVD were 2.7, 2.9, and 6.3% in individuals with NGT, IGT, and diabetes, respectively. The overall prevalence rate was 3.2%. Known diabetic subjects had a higher prevalence of PVD (7.8%) compared with newly diagnosed diabetic subjects (3.5%). PVD was uncommon until middle-age and then the prevalence rate increased dramatically. Univariate regression analysis showed age � 50 years (odds ratio [OR] 6.3, 95% CI 2.1‐20.6, P � 0.001) and hypertension (OR 2.7, 0.9‐7.3, P = 0.08) to be associated with PVD, whereas smoking and serum lipid levels showed no association. Multivariate regression analysis identified age as the most significant risk factor for PVD. Of the 90 subjects who had coronary artery disease (CAD), only 6 had PVD, and the positive predictive value of the ABI for CAD was only 30%. CONCLUSIONS — The prevalence of PVD in this urban South Indian population is considerably lower than that reported in European and U.S. studies and is in marked contrast to the high prevalence rate of CAD reported in this population.