title: Training to measure ankle-brachial index at the undergraduate level: can it be successful?
abstract: We examined the effectiveness of teaching ankle-brachial index (ABI) measurement to medical students. ABI was estimated in 28 lower limbs by an experienced vascular surgeon. After a 2-week training course, 5 fourth-year students repeated the estimations and their results were compared with that of the trainer's. There was no difference in ABI values between trainees and trainer for subjects with mild-to-moderate peripheral arterial disease (PAD; 0.77 ± 0.22 vs 0.77 ± 0.19, respectively, P = .95). In the 4 normal limbs, ABI was 1.37 ± 0.12 and 1.16 ± 0.11, as measured by the trainer and the trainees, respectively (P < .00001). In subjects with severe PAD, trainees tended to overestimate ABI (P = .0002) in the beginning of the educational process, but this was no longer the case at a later stage of the training with no difference in ABI values between the 2 examiner groups (P = .09). In conclusion, training of medical students in ABI measurement can be helpful toward accurate estimation of PAD and merits further practice.
authors.affiliation: Democritus University of Thrace, Alexandroupolis, Greece. efstratiosgeorg@gmail.com
authors.forename: Efstratios
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Georgakarakos
authors.forename: Evaggelia
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Papadaki
authors.forename: Vasileia
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Vamvakerou
authors.forename: Dimitrios
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Lytras
authors.forename: Afroditi
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Tsiokani
authors.forename: Olympia
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Tsolakaki
authors.forename: Dimitra
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Chlimpou
authors.forename: Nikolaos
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Papanas
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D055109:Ankle Brachial Index; D002983:Clinical Competence; D004504:Education, Medical, Undergraduate; D005260:Female; D006115:Greece; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D058729:Peripheral Arterial Disease / Q000175:diagnosis*; D012720:Severity of Illness Index
keywords: atherosclerosis; intermittent claudication; ischemia; peripheral arterial disease