Summary

Background: Peripheral arterial disease (PAD) is associated with increased cardiovascular risk. In Brazil, data on PAD prevalence and risk factors are scarce. Objective: To assess prevalence and risk factors related to PAD in Brazilian urban centers with more than 100,000 inhabitants. Methods: 1DWLRQDOPXOWLFHQWHUFURVVVHFWLRQDOVWXG\RILQGLYLGXDOV\HDUVIURPPDMRU%UD]LOLDQXUEDQ FHQWHUVSDUWLFLSDWLQJLQWKH´+HDUWVRI%UD]LO3URMHFWµ3$'GLDJQRVLVZDVEDVHGRQDQNOHEUDFKLDOLQGH[$%, The statistical analysis used the corrected Chi-square (Pearson) test for complex samples and confidence intervals. P< 0.05 was considered statitically significant. Results: PAD prevalence was 10.5%. Intermittent claudication (IC) was present in only 9 % of PAD patients. A significant association was found between PAD and the following factors: diabetes, total and abdominal obesity, stroke and ischemic heart disease (IHD). There was a trend of higher PAD prevalence among individuals with hypertension, heart failure, chronic renal failure on dialysis, as well as those who had smoked over 20 pack-years. For females, presence of IHD was associated with a 4.9-fold greater risk of PAD. Among males, a 6.6-fold increased risk of PAD was found for diabetic in comparison to non-diabetic individuals. Conclusion: PAD prevalence was markedly high, considering the low mean age of the studied population (44±14.7 yrs)