Prevalence and Risk Factors of Peripheral Arterial Disease in Patients with Lumbar Spinal Stenosis and Intermittent Claudication: CT Angiography Study

BACKGROUND: It can be difficult to differentiate between vascular and neurogenic intermittent claudication. The exact diagnosis often cannot be made on clinical evidence and ultimately requires imaging. Perioperative screening for peripheral arterial disease (PAD) in lumbar spinal stenosis (LSS) patients is important because untreated PAD increases the risk of severe vascular events. The aims of this study were to study the prevalence of PAD in LSS patients with symptoms of intermittent claudication, and to study the independent risk factors for PAD. We specified the cases where it was necessary to perform computed tomography angiography (CTA) as a preoperative screening tool in surgery for spinal stenosis. METHODS: This study involved a retrospective analysis of 186 consecutive subjects with radiographic evidence of LSS and symptoms of intermittent claudication, who underwent 3D CTA of the lower extremities at our institution during a three-year period. More than 50% luminal narrowing on CT angiograms was determined to be clinically significant and placed in the PAD group. RESULTS: Thirty-two subjects were diagnosed with PAD and referred to the general vascular team in our hospital, where they received treatment for PAD. In the non-PAD group (154 subjects), 117 underwent definitive surgery for spinal stenosis such as posterior lumbar interbody fusion and a further 37 underwent conservative treatment. Only hypertension, diabetes, and men gender were found to be statistically significant predictors of PAD. CONCLUSION: The current study showed that man gender, diabetes and hypertension were the greatest risk factors for PAD. We conclude that man patients with diabetes and/or hypertension should be put under serious consideration for routine CTA examination when under evaluation for LSS and intermittent claudication.