Arterial disease guidelines published

DALLAS, Dec. 15 (UPI) -- The Dallas-based American Heart Association and the American College of Cardiology have published Peripheral Arterial Disease Guidelines.

Arterial diseases can impair physical health by diminishing an individual's ability to walk and may lead to amputation of extremities, rupture of an aortic aneurysm, severe hypertension or kidney failure. Such diseases contribute to current rates of heart attack, stroke and cardiovascular death.

"These guidelines provide a concise diagnostic and treatment guidebook for patients suffering from PAD and for physicians, physician's assistants, nurse practitioners and nurses who are now offering care to treat them," said Dr. Alan Hirsch, chairman of the writing committee and an associate professor of epidemiology, medicine and radiology at the University of Minnesota.

An executive summary of the guidelines will be published in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology and in Circulation: Journal of the American Heart Association.