Prevalence of Peripheral Arterial Disease among Adult Patients Attending Outpatient Clinic at a General Hospital in South Angola.

Background. Peripheral arterial disease (PAD) is a common manifestation of atherosclerosis, whose prevalence is increasing worldwide, and is associated with all-cause mortality. However, no study has assessed this disease in Huambo. The aim of this study was to evaluate the prevalence of PAD in patients attending an outpatient clinic at a general hospital in Huambo, South Angola. Methods. A cross-sectional study, including 115 patients aged 40 years and older attending an outpatient service. The evaluation included a basic questionnaire for lifestyle and medical history and ankle-brachial index (ABI) measurement using hand-held Doppler. PAD was defined as an ABI ≤0.9 in either lower limb. Results. Of 115 patients, 62.60% were women with a median age of 52.5 (range of 40 to 91) years. The prevalence of PAD was 42.6% (95% confidence intervals [CI]: 95%: 33.91-52.17%). Among patients with PAD, 95.92% had mild disease and 4.08% moderate to severe disease. The main risk factor for PAD was age (≥60 years) (χ (2) = 3.917, P ≤ 0.05). The prevalence was slightly higher in men and hypertensive subjects, but without statistical significance with ORs of 1.5 (95% CI: 0.69-3.21) and 1.42 (95% CI: 0.64-3.17), respectively. Hypertension was also high in the group (66.95%). Conclusion. The prevalence of PAD was 42.6%, higher in those aged 60 years and older. More studies, with representative samples, are necessary to clarify PAD prevalence and associated risk factors.