Lower Extremity Peripheral Artery Disease and Quality of Life Among Older Individuals in the Community.

BACKGROUND: Evidence regarding the association of lower extremity peripheral arterial disease with quality of life (QOL) is mainly from selected clinical populations or relatively small clinical cohorts. Thus, we investigated this association in community-derived populations.

METHODS AND RESULTS: Using data of 5115 participants aged 66 to 90 years from visit 5 (2011-2013) of the Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities Study, we quantified the associations of ankle-brachial index (ABI) with several QOL parameters, including 12-item Short-Form Health Survey (SF-12), after accounting for potential confounders using linear and logistic regression models. Peripheral arterial disease defined by an ABI

CONCLUSIONS: Low ABI (even borderline) was independently associated with poor QOL, especially for physical components, in community-dwelling older adults. QOL is a critical element for older adults, and thus, further studies are warranted to assess whether peripheral arterial disease-specific management can improve QOL in older populations.