Evidence-Experience Gap and Future Perspective on the Treatment of Peripheral Artery Disease

Peripheral artery disease (PAD) is a systemic disease associated with impaired limb function, poor quality of life, and increased cardiovascular morbidity. Its incidence has been dramatically increasing over years because of the emergence of an aging society and the increase in the number of patients with atherosclerotic risk factors. The clustering of these risk factors promotes disease development, reportedly leading to the differential location of atherosclerotic lesions in lower extremity arteries. The clinical presentations of PAD include intermittent claudication and chronic limb-threatening ischemia (CLTI). PAD is associated with a high risk of mortality and morbidity from both cardiovascular and limb events. The therapeutic goals for patients with PAD include 1) relief from PAD-related limb symptoms, 2) the prevention of new-onset and the development and recurrence of PAD, and 3) the prevention of concomitant adverse events due to coronary artery disease (CAD) and cerebrovascular disease (CVD). There are several types of antithrombotic agents, and their main role in patients with PAD is to reduce systemic events mainly including cardiovascular and lower extremity-related events. Currently, the efficacy of direct oral anticoagulant (DOAC) is also suggested by recent clinical trials. Although endovascular therapy (EVT) has been a first-line revascularization strategy for symptomatic PAD, whether clinical outcomes after EVT are comparable to those after surgical bypass therapy remains inconclusive.