US News: Smoking Puts Blacks at High Risk of Serious Artery Disease: Study
January 28, 2019
Smoking increases black Americans’ risk of peripheral artery disease (PAD), a new study warns. PAD — a narrowing of arteries that provide blood to the arms, legs, brain and other organs such as the kidneys — can lead to stroke, kidney failure, erectile dysfunction, pain in the legs when walking and loss of limbs. Click… more
MedPage Today: Smoking is Strong PAD Risk Factor in African Americans
January 24, 2019
African Americans who smoke are at substantially increased risk for developing peripheral artery disease (PAD), with a dose-dependent association with subclinical disease, a Jackson Heart Study analysis showed. After adjustment for covariates, current smokers had increased risk of ankle‐brachial index <1 (OR 2.2, 95% CI, 1.5-3.3), as well as increased risk of abdominal aortic (OR… more
CardioVascular Coalition Commends CMS for Appropriate Updates to Final Physician Fee Schedule Rule
December 5, 2018
PAD advocacy community, bipartisan lawmakers urged CMS to work with stakeholders to properly value revascularization services WASHINGTON– The Cardiovascular Coalition (CVC), a coalition of physicians, care providers, advocates, and manufacturers dedicated to finding solutions designed to improve awareness and prevention of peripheral artery disease (PAD), commends the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) for… more
American Journal of Managed Care: Increasing Awareness this National Diabetes Month Can Save Limbs and Lives
November 29, 2018
With the holiday season fast approaching, most Americans are looking forward to feasting with family and friends and taking a much-needed break from work. However, for over 30 million Americans living with diabetes and 84.1 million living with prediabetes, the consumption of unhealthy food and long periods of inactivity during the holiday season can make… more
MedPage Today: Healthcare is Justice for Underserved Communities
November 3, 2018
– Foluso Fakorede, MD, on tackling the epidemic of PAD among minorities In 1966, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., observed: “Of all the forms of inequality, injustice in healthcare is the most shocking and inhumane.” Addressing the Medical Committee for Human Rights, he understood that the failure to adequately prevent and treat diseases in minority… more
CardioVascular Coalition Commends Bipartisan Lawmakers for Warning Against Proposed Cuts to Revascularization Services
October 19, 2018
CVC supports bipartisan group of lawmakers for signing letter to CMS opposing the proposed 30% cut in the CY 2019 Physician Fee Schedule Proposed Rule WASHINGTON– The Cardiovascular Coalition (CVC), a consortium of physicians, care providers, advocates, and manufacturers working to improve awareness and prevention of peripheral artery disease (PAD), today praised a bipartisan group… more
Morning Consult: Reduce American Amputations by Enacting Comprehensive Solutions to PAD
September 26, 2018
In the 21st-century world, we have technologies that allow us to treat and cure life-threatening disease, yet we have not stopped the scourge of non-traumatic amputations that impact tens of thousands of Americans every year. Non-traumatic amputations are often unnecessarily the result of peripheral artery disease, a limb-threatening circulatory condition that data show affected nearly… more
CardioVascular Coalition Urges Congress to Support Limb Loss Prevention Initiatives During Peripheral Artery Disease (PAD) Awareness Month
September 20, 2018
PAD community emphasizes importance of protecting access to revascularization services to reduce amputations in Medicare patients Washington, DC– Citing the pressing need to prevent unnecessary limb amputation in Medicare patients, the CardioVascular Coalition (CVC), a leading group of providers, physicians, and manufacturers, urged Congress to act to protect access to vital revascularization services during Peripheral… more
The Hill: Congress must act to protect vulnerable population from unnecessary limb loss
September 12, 2018
Most Americans consider limb amputation to be the result of a traumatic and non-avoidable event. But for the 18 million citizens who develop Peripheral Artery Disease (PAD), the possibility of a preventable limb amputation is a stark reality. During my years of practice, I have seen many patients present with PAD – the hardening of… more
New PAD Task Force Joins Lawmakers in Calling for Policies to Reduce Amputations for Patients with Peripheral Artery Disease
September 6, 2018
PAD Task Force urges lawmakers to support establishment of intragovernmental workgroup on amputation reduction and oppose proposed Medicare cuts to PAD treatments WASHINGTON– Members of the newly formed PAD Task Force – including the Association of Black Cardiologists, CardioVascular Coalition, Preventative Cardiovascular Nurse Association and Society for Cardiovascular Angiography and Interventions– today commended Congressman Erik Paulsen (MN-3) and… more
Health Leaders Media: Strategies to Close the Racial Disparity in PAD Care
August 14, 2018
Addressing the racial disparity in peripheral artery disease care can include data-driven performance improvement efforts and targeting high-risk patients for treatment at high-quality hospitals. Significant racial disparities exist in the treatment of peripheral artery disease (PAD), and low-performing regions of the country should launch care improvement initiatives to help close the gaps, researchers say. The… more
WebMD: Fewer Dialysis Patients Facing Leg Amputations
July 31, 2018
Losing a leg is one of the most traumatic consequences of advanced kidney disease, but the risk of amputations has dropped significantly since 2000, a new study finds. Between 2000 and 2014, amputations among U.S. patients with end-stage kidney disease who were receiving dialysis were cut by 51 percent. Despite the decrease, however, almost half… more
News Medical: New data shows that simple blood test accurately diagnoses Peripheral Artery Disease
July 25, 2018
Prevencio, Inc., announces the publication of data that demonstrates a simple new blood test accurately diagnoses significant Peripheral Artery Disease (PAD), a circulatory problem in which plaque-narrowed arteries reduce blood flow to a patient’s limbs and kidneys. If left untreated, PAD can lead to clogged arteries and increase the risk of a major cardiac event… more
NewsMax: Symptoms of Peripheral Artery Disease
July 17, 2018
The classic symptom of peripheral artery disease (PAD) is pain in the legs upon exertion, such as walking, which is relieved by rest. It can also present as an ache, cramp, or burning sensation that occurs intermittently during periods of activity — and therefore is known as intermittent claudication. As symptoms progress, they may also… more
Fox 8: Vein Health: Peripheral Artery Disease
July 16, 2018
Peripheral Artery Disease (PAD) is a narrowing of arteries outside of the heart and brain, in the stomach, arms and most commonly the legs. Similar to coronary artery disease (CAD), PAD is caused by atherosclerosis, when plaque builds up in the wall of the artery. Plaque build-up can grow large enough to significantly reduce blood… more
Medscape: USPSTF Stays Neutral on Global ABI Testing in Asymptomatic PAD
July 12, 2018
There is still not enough evidence to recommend for or against using the ankle-brachial index (ABI) test to screen for peripheral arterial disease (PAD) in adults without symptoms, such as claudication in the lower leg, a US Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) report concludes. In a statement and evidence summary published July 10 in JAMA,… more
AJMC: Asymptomatic Adults Do Not Need Peripheral Artery Disease Screening, USPSTF Says
July 10, 2018
The United States Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) decided that current evidence is insufficient to recommend screening for peripheral artery disease (PAD) and cardiovascular risk with the ankle-brachial index (ABI) in asymptomatic adults. In this report, published in JAMA, the USPSTF updated its 2013 recommendations, this time expanding the review to include patients with diabetes and interventions… more
WWLTV: More Patients Saved From Amputation After Seeing Dr. Craig Walker
June 14, 2018
Retired Louisiana history professor, Dr. Paul Leslie, will soon play golf again. But not long ago, he was told his leg needed to be amputated.
WWLTV: Dr. Craig Walker Saves Healthcare Industry Veteran from Double Amputation
March 16, 2018
As a successful healthcare executive, Fred Goad of Brentwood, Tennessee had access to the best healthcare resources around the country. However, after countless visits and treatment methods, the circulation condition in his legs worsened, and he was told by multiple physicians that amputation was his only option. At 76 years old, Fred reluctantly started planning… more
KVIA: Life with Peripheral Artery Disease
February 25, 2018
Lucas Williams said he felt he was a normal, healthy guy. “I was a 43-year-old, who I thought was in pretty good shape,” Williams said. That all changed on October 5, 2017. “I woke up that morning, did my usual routine. I was getting ready to take my girls to school, when all of a… more
Reuters: Limb amputation rates for blocked arteries vary by race and setting
February 15, 2018
Patients with severe blockages in leg arteries can sometimes be treated with surgery to reroute blood flow; otherwise they require amputation – which black patients are more likely than whites to get, according to a study of New York State data. The racial disparities were greatest at hospitals with high volumes of surgery and among… more
Healio: Women with PAD may respond differently to DCB treatment
February 13, 2018
Conflicting data demonstrating worse outcomes in women after receiving drug-coated balloons raise questions about whether women with peripheral artery disease respond differently to the treatment than men, an expert said at the 2018 International Symposium on Endovascular Therapy (ISET). In general, women with PAD present differently than men, according to Maureen Kohi, MD, chief of… more
Morning Consult: Let’s Make Unnecessary Amputations a Thing of the Past
February 13, 2018
Did you know that more than 185,000 Americans – enough to fill 2 1/2 football stadiums – lose a limb each year due to amputation? Did you also know that half of those amputations are the result of completely preventable vascular diseases like peripheral artery disease? Even though we’re well into the 21st century, tens of… more
Cardiovascular Care Community Applauds Lawmakers for Urging Administration to Make Unnecessary Amputations a Thing of the Past
February 8, 2018
Bipartisan group of lawmakers call for a national strategy to reduce non-traumatic amputations to zero Washington – The CardioVascular Coalition (CVC) today applauded 32 members of the U.S. House of Representatives for urging the Department of Health and Human Services and the Veterans Health Administration to adopt a national strategy to reduce non-traumatic amputations through… more
AJMC: “Sprint to Zero“: A Strategy to Address High Rates of Nontraumatic Amputations in Minority Communities
December 12, 2017
By Jeffrey Carr, MD, FACC, FSCAI CMS can take steps to raise awareness, including a specific quality measure, to ensure that testing occurs prior to nontraumatic amputation. EVERY DAY, APPROXIMATELY 500 Americans lose a limb and join millions of others who will struggle with a lifetime of high medical bills, disability, and significant barriers to participating in their… more
Morning Consult: Policy Reforms Needed to Address Most Traumatic Impacts of Diabetes
December 1, 2017
According to the American Diabetes Association, more than 30 million Americans today are living with diabetes. With a new diagnosis every 21 seconds, it’s a disease that’s forcing growing numbers of Americans to contend with a variety of significant health challenges. Uncontrolled, it can rob patients of their vision, kidneys and even their lives. In 2014, diabetes… more
Cardiology Advisor: New Guidelines Recommend Multidisciplinary Approach for Peripheral Arterial Disease
September 21, 2017
Recent guidelines on the diagnosis and treatment of peripheral arterial disease (PAD) published in the European Heart Journal provide an updated resource with available evidence on diagnosis and management strategies for extracranial carotid and vertebral artery disease, mesenteric artery disease, multisite artery disease, and renal artery disease, among several other types of PAD. According to… more
Medical Xpress: Smoking number one risk factor for PAD
September 19, 2017
Smoking and diabetes are the two leading risk factors for peripheral artery disease (PAD), a narrowing of the arteries which can result in amputation, according to a study carried out at the University of Dundee and part-funded by the British Heart Foundation (BHF). Diabetics who smoked were 16 times more likely to develop PAD than… more
CardioVascular Coalition Urges Adoption of National Strategy to Address Unnecessary Amputations During Peripheral Artery Disease (PAD) Awareness Month
September 19, 2017
Vascular care leaders call for policies to prevent amputation without arterial testing, increase PAD awareness, support screening for at-risk populations and promote multidisciplinary care WASHINGTON – The CardioVascular Coalition (CVC), a leading group of community-based cardiovascular and endovascular care providers, physicians, and manufacturers created to advance community-based solutions designed to improve awareness, prevention, and intervention… more
KGWN: September is Peripheral Artery Disease Month
September 18, 2017
Peripheral Arterial Disease is a very common disease, about 18 million American’s suffer from the disease. Also known as PAD can be treated. We had Dr. Elias Kfoury on the morning show to go over a little of what PAD is, the symptoms, and how to treat the disease. PAD is a chronic circulatory condition… more
Huff Post: Why I Helped Create A Social Campaign Where People Take Pictures Of Their Socks
September 16, 2017
I worked in healthcare for close to a decade and I am still passionate about the great work and sacrifice people in this field are doing. September is Peripheral Artery Disease (P.A.D.) awareness month. According to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Resources, P.A.D. currently affects 8 to 12 million people in the U.S…. more
The Hill: We need a new strategy for tackling peripheral artery disease
September 13, 2017
It is simply unacceptable that in 2017, so many Americans undergo a non-traumatic limb amputation each year. Yet, as we recognize Peripheral Artery Disease (PAD) Awareness Month this September, estimates suggest between 160,000 and 180,000 Americans lose one of their limbs every year — about half of which are attributable to preventable vascular diseases. This… more
Health Essentials: Peripheral Artery Disease: Why Do Women Have Worse Outcomes Than Men?
September 13, 2017
As a woman, you likely know that regular examinations and tests can help you and your doctor watch out for breast and cervical cancers. But there’s another common, but lesser-known, condition that requires the same diligent watchfulness, especially for women: peripheral artery disease (PAD). PAD happens when plaque builds up in the blood vessels of your… more
Texas Public Radio: Peripheral Artery Disease Is Widely Undiagnosed
September 10, 2017
Vascular surgeons say Peripheral Artery Disease – or P.A.D. – is one of the most underdiagnosed medical conditions in America. If left untreated, it can cause major mobility problems, or it can even be fatal. In today’s TPR Lifeline, Bioscience-Medicine reporter Wendy Rigby talks to Lyssa Ochoa, MD, a vascular surgeon with Peripheral Vascular Associates… more