Percutaneous transluminal lower limb angioplasty [PTA] for chronic limb threatening ischaemia [CLTI] in a low resource setting - 4 year experience

With the emergence of diabetes mellitus, there is a significant burden of peripheral occlusive arterial disease [POAD] in Sri Lanka [1]. The age-sex standardized prevalence of diabetes mellitus for Sri Lankans aged 20 years and above was 10.3% [2]. The worldwide prevalence of POAD was evaluated from several studies and range from 3% to 10%, increasing to 15% to 20% in persons over 70 years [3]. A study done in elderly urban Chinese population reveals a 20% prevalence of POAD [4]. In another study done in South Indian population, the overall prevalence of POAD was 3.2% with higher prevalence [7.8%] in known diabetic patients compared to newly diagnosed diabetic patients [3.5%] [4]. Age and sex adjusted prevalence of POAD in Sri Lankan population was found to be 3.6% in a study done in 2013 [6].