Pharmacist detection of peripheral arterial disease through the use of a handheld Doppler

To evaluate the effectiveness of a program in which pharmacists screened at-risk patients for peripheral arterial disease using a handheld doppler device.

Prospective study.

Primary care and consultative outpatient clinic.

Forty-one physician-referred patients older than 55 years who had no documented history of peripheral arterial disease.

The pharmacists administered the San Diego Claudication Questionnaire and performed doppler examinations to calculate ankle-to-brachial indexes (ABIs). Patients with symptoms of claudication or with an ABI of 0.9 or less were considered to have possible peripheral arterial disease. Each diagnosis was confirmed by a physician. These patients were either referred for further evaluation, provided with immediate treatment, or told to continue their current drug regimen, if appropriate.

Eight (19.5%) of the 41 patients were diagnosed with peripheral arterial disease. Antiplatelet therapy was started in five patients, and one patient was referred to a vascular specialist.

This pharmacist-initiated program effectively detected peripheral arterial disease in previously unscreened patients.