[Doppler ultrasound determination of maximal blood flow velocity in the diagnosis of peripheral arterial occlusive diseases in diabetes mellitus].

Seventy-five diabetic and 40 nondiabetic subjects who were suffering from peripheral vascular disease were studied in order to determine whether the degree of the severity of their disease can be better calculated by Doppler ultrasound examinations of the peak velocity than by the systolic pressure of the peripheral bloodstream. In 46 examinations of normal controls the mean value of the peak velocity was 13.3 +/- 3.3 cm/s with a standard deviation of 15.4% +/- 13.2% on one day and 16.1% +/- 15.9% on different days. Considering patients with or without diabetes mellitus the velocity was significantly decreased in correlation to an increasing degree of severity of the vascular disease (P less than 0.001); however, the decrease was lower in diabetic than in nondiabetic subjects (6.9 +/- 2.8 vs 4.6 +/- 6.2, P less than 0.05). The systolic pressure hardly decreased, but remained higher in all stages of peripheral vascular disease of diabetics than in the nondiabetic subject (P less than 0.05 to P less than 0.005). There was a significant decrease of the systolic pressure only in diabetic subjects with the most advanced degree of the disease, i.e. stage IV (P less than 0.05). It is concluded from this study that Doppler ultrasound measurements of the peak velocity of the peripheral bloodstream are a useful parameter to calculate the degree of severity of the peripheral vascular disease. In addition, it is concluded than peak velocity is an even better prognostic indicator of peripheral vascular disease than is measurement of the systolic blood pressure at the feet.