Endovascular treatment of diabetic peripheral arterial disease in older and oldest old patients: a retrospective study

Background Peripheral arterial disease (PAD) is frequent among older diabetic patients, but the evidence about endovascular revascularization is very limited. Method We retrospectively analyzed data collected from 120 diabetic patients consecutively admitted to a Diabetic Foot Clinic, including 64 patients aged 65-79 years and 56 patients aged 80 or more. Results Percutaneous transluminal angioplasty (PTA) was followed by technical success in 82.5% of older patients and 62.5% of oldest old ones (p = 0.05). No significant difference was observed in regards to complete re-epithelization (76.6 vs 76.8%, p = 0.820), recurrent stenosis (26.6 vs 19.6%, p = 0.371), intra- or post-procedure complications (21.9 vs 10.7%, p = 0.102), and amputations (12.5 vs 5.4%, p = 0.176). Discussion Our findings suggest that older and oldest old patients with diabetic foot and critical ischemia could be effectively and safely treated with PTA.