Imagine putting your socks on one morning and noticing your big toe, which has been painful for a few weeks, has started turning black. A trip to your doctor ends in being referred urgently to a specialist. They tell you a bypass operation of a blocked artery in your thigh is needed to save your foot. This is the reality for far too many people. In the UK, vascular surgeons performed more than 3,500 amputations in 2023.
Efforts are being made throughout the NHS to reduce the number of amputations performed due to peripheral artery disease. The vascular surgery unit in Glenfield Hospital, Leicester, aimed to streamline the process from referral to treatment for people at risk of amputation. With colleagues, I co-authored a new study that shows this focus on speed may have reduced the risk of amputation by half.
