Same-day discharge after angioplasty for peripheral vascular disease: is it a safe and feasible option?

Peripheral vascular disease affects 20% of the population >55 years of age. Patients who become symptomatic are managed by a number of technique's including medical management, percutaneous angioplasty, bypass surgery, and in nonreconstructable situations, limb amputation. Clinicians treating patients by means of angioplasty have traditionally carried out these procedures on an inpatient basis. Limited resources and pressure on the availability of inpatient beds has necessitated clinicians to reevaluate how many of these patients are managed. Treating suitable patients as day cases is an attractive option that frees up resources and is financially advantageous. This paper examines the feasibility of same-day discharge after angioplasty, with a particular emphasis on achieving safe patient outcomes. It explores how advances in endovascular technologies and techniques have contributed to making same-day discharge an ever more feasible option. Nurse led pre-admission clinics run by specialist nurses facilitate safe and appropriate patient selection, where patients at risk for postprocedural problems can be identified effectively based on predefined clinical criteria.