Prevalence of asymptomatic peripheral arterial disease and related risk factors in younger and elderly patients in Taiwan.

We determined the prevalence of asymptomatic peripheral arterial disease (PAD) and cardiovascular risk factors in Taiwan. Ambulatory participants (n = 1915) without symptoms of PAD were enrolled (mean age of 61.2 years). The ankle-brachial index (ABI) was used to detect the PAD (ABI < 0.90). The overall prevalence of asymptomatic PAD was 5.4% (2.8% in the younger participants [<65 years of age, n = 1021] and 8.4% in the elderly participants [≥65 years of age, n = 894]). Younger participants with asymptomatic PAD had a significantly higher rate of hypertension (55.2% vs 30%) and obesity (31% vs 13.3%) than those without asymptomatic PAD (P < .05). Elderly participants with asymptomatic PAD had a significantly higher rate of diabetes mellitus (36% vs 21.2%) and hypertension (69.3% vs 55.4%) than those without asymptomatic PAD (P < .05). Asymptomatic PAD is prevalent among elderly Taiwanese individuals. Overall, age was the strongest risk factor for the development of asymptomatic PAD.