[Implications of the REACH registry for vascular surgery]

Because of the increase in life expectancy, peripheral artery disease (PAD) has become a major health problem. A study performed in Spain in persons aged more than 65 years old found an overall prevalence of PAD of 9.9%. The most important risk factors for PAD were smoking, diabetes mellitus, advanced age, hyperlipidemia and hypertension. Treatment includes smoking cessation, exercise, statins, platelet antiaggregants, cilostazol or hemorheologic agents, and revascularization techniques. Data from the Spanish arm of REACH indicate that the PAD subgroup shows the poorest control of blood pressure and cholesterol and that use of platelet antiaggregants and statins is lowest in these patients, indicating that therapeutic and preventive strategies are not being correctly applied.