[Effects of physical exercise and indobufen in patients with intermittent claudication. Results after a 2-year follow-up].

The study included 18 patients suffering from intermittent claudication before (stage 1) and after (stage 2) 3 months of rehabilitative training and after 2 years of follow-up (stage 3) during which patients undertook regular exercise (walking for 1 hour 3-4 days a week) and antiplatelet aggregating therapy with indobufen (200 mg x 2/day). A comparison of the data revealed that:a) there was a significant and gradual increase in the claudication pain distance (CPD) and maximal walking distance (MWD), and a reduced recovery time between stages 1 and 3 (parameters were assessed during and after walking on a treadmill (rolling mat) at a speed of 3.2 Km/h on a 12% slope); b) the resting ankle/arm pressure ratio was unchanged, but a significant increase was observed when the ratio was measured after exercise between stages 1 and 3; c) fibrinogenemia was significantly reduced between stages 1 and 2. Out of 18 subjects studied, 8 exceeded an MWD of 640 metres (maximum limit of exercise test which was suspended after 12'), 3 became asymptomatic, and 1 showed a significantly reduced capacity to walk. The paper concludes that, although it is necessary to obtain a confirmation from controlled studies, indobufen therapy and regular physical exercise represent an efficacious therapeutic approach, even over a long-term period, to stage II chronic arteriopathies of the lower limbs.