4
Overview
Table 2. Definitions of PAD Key Terms
Term Definition
ALI Acute (≤2 wk) hypoperfusion of the limb that may be characterized
by: pain, pallor, pulselessness, poikilothermia, paresthesias, and/or
paralysis.
ALI is further classified according to the Rutherford classification
system (Table 4).
Anatomic level Anatomic subsets to localize disease in the lower extremity. Patients
with PAD can have multilevel arterial disease across multiple
segments.
• Aortoiliac—Includes infrarenal abdominal aorta, common iliac,
and external and internal iliac arteries.
• Femoropopliteal—Includes common femoral, profunda femoris,
superficial femoral, and popliteal arteries.
• Infrapopliteal—Includes tibial-peroneal trunk, anterior tibial
artery, posterior tibial artery, peroneal artery, plantar pedal loop,
and pedal vessels (common plantar, medial plantar, and lateral
plantar arteries).
Angiosome-
based blood flow
Uninterrupted arterial flow to the anatomic territory of a source
artery in the skin and deep tissues. In the context of PAD, the
angiosome refers to the skin region and underlying tissue, generally
with a wound, supplied by a specific infrapopliteal artery.
Claudication Fatigue, cramping, aching, pain, or other discomfort of vascular
origin in the muscles of the lower extremities that is consistently
induced by walking and consistently relieved by rest (usually within
approximately 10 min). Claudication that limits functional status
is known as functionally limiting claudication. Claudication is
recognized as a manifestation of chronic symptomatic PAD (see
Section 2.1, "Recognizing Clinical Subsets for PAD").
CLTI A condition characterized by chronic (>2 wk) ischemic rest
pain, nonhealing wounds and ulcers, or gangrene attributable to
objectively proven arterial occlusive disease. Current nomenclature
has evolved from the previous commonly used term of CLI to
reflect the chronic nature of this condition and its potentially
limb-threatening nature with associated risk for amputation and to
distinguish it from ALI.
Endovascular
revascularization
Catheter-based revascularization procedures employing modalities
such as percutaneous transluminal (balloon) angioplasty, drug-
coated balloon angioplasty, stenting (bare metal, drug coated, or
covered), and atherectomy.
Note: The numbering of the following tables and figures may differ from that of
the Clinical Practice Guideline.
Colors in tables and figures correspond to Class of Recommendations and
Level of Evidence tables on pages 54–55.
