Short summary

Patients with vascular diseases are large in numbers, but short on attention. The Danish Vascular Survey (DanVasc) will attend this gap by investigating the burden of the major vascular diseases: peripheral artery disease, symptomatic artery stenosis, and abdominal aortic aneurysm. The DanVasc survey in combination with register-based data illuminates the disease burden from a patient and society perspective alike; and determines how to alleviate the disease burden.

Rationale

Vascular diseases like peripheral artery disease (PAD), symptomatic artery stenosis (SCS), and abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA) are a worldwide health concern. Patients with vascular diseases are at risk of suffering from leg amputation, recurrent ischemic stroke, and aneurysm rupture. Furthermore, vascular diseases are accompanied by an enhanced risk of major cardiovascular events and excess mortality. Thus, vascular diseases influence patients mentally, socially, and physically. However, the disease burden across these vascular diseases is sparsely illuminated from a patient and society perspective alike. As of now, no systematic rehabilitation exists within the field of vascular surgery in Denmark. Patient-reported outcome measures enable us to illuminate patients' perspectives of living with vascular diseases and further capture changes in health status and quality of life. Combining patient-reported outcome measures with registry data allows investigation of factors associated with worse health outcomes. Moreover, patient-reported outcome measures provide knowledge of how patients' needs for healthcare services are met and enable us to alleviate the disease burden.

DanVasc aims to investigate self-reported health status, health literacy, and medication adherence, including changes over time, and to explore their associations with worse outcomes (healthcare utilisation and mortality) in patients with PAD, SCS, and AAA; and to determine the content and rationale of future rehabilitating interventions.

Description of the cohort

All seven departments of vascular surgery in Denmark (Aalborg, Aarhus, Copenhagen, Kolding, Odense, Roskilde and Viborg) will consecutively include patients from their outpatient clinics, as follows; newly referred patients and patients referred for vascular surgery due to AAA, PAD or SCS within one year (Marts 2023 - Marts 2024)

Data and biological material

Survey questionnaire, Registry data

Collaborating researchers and departments

Vascular Department Aalborg

• Christian Petersen, ass. professor

Vascular Depatment Viborg

• Marie Dahl, ass. professor

Vascular Department Aahus

• Jacob Budtz-Lilly, ass. professor

Vascular Department Kolding

• Kim Houlind, professor

Vascular Depatment Odense

• Jes Lindholt, professor

Vascular Department Roskilde

• Saeid Shahidi, ass. professor

Vascular Department Rigshospitalet

• Jonas Eiberg, professor