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SYSTEMATIC REVIEW article

Front. Clin. Diabetes Healthc.

Sec. Diabetes Clinical Epidemiology

Volume 6 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/fcdhc.2025.1563984

Exploring the Prevalence and Risk Factors of Peripheral Artery Disease in Type 2 Diabetes Patients in Sub-Saharan Africa: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis

Provisionally accepted
  • 1College of Health Sciences and Medicine, Wolaita Sodo University, Sodo, Southern Nations, Nationalities, and Peoples' Region, Ethiopia
  • 2Faculty of Health Sciences, Hawassa University, Hawassa, Ethiopia

The final, formatted version of the article will be published soon.

Type 2diabetes and lower-extremity peripheral artery disease are growing global health problems associated with considerable cardiovascular and limb-related morbidity and mortality, poor quality of life and high healthcare resource use and costs. Diabetes is a well-known risk factor for PAD, which further increases the risk of long-term complications. The primary aim of this systematic review was to ascertain the aggregated prevalence of PAD among individuals diagnosed with T2DM residing in sub-Saharan Africa.Objective: To determine the pooled prevalence and associated factors of peripheral artery disease among patients with type 2diabetes mellitus in sub-Saharan Africa.A systematic review and meta-analysis were performed in alignment with the guidelines established by the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses. To identify papers published in English up to November 8, 2024, the electronic databases of Medline, web of science, Science Direct, Excerpta Medica Database, Cochrane Library, African Journals Online, and Google Scholar were searched. A random-effects model was employed to estimate the pooled prevalence and associated factors of peripheral artery disease.This study revealed that the pooled prevalence of peripheral artery disease among patients with T2DM was 35.7% (95% CI 28.7, 42.7) reflecting the significant impact of DM on vascular health with statistically significant heterogeneity observed between studies (I 2 = 94.9 %, P < 0.001). Age, elevated low density lipoprotein, elevated BMI, and diabetes illness duration exceeding 10 years were the significant predictors.The aggregate burden of PAD in individuals with T2DM within the sub-Saharan African region is estimated at 35.7%, suggesting that a considerable segment of the sub-Saharan population has been impacted. Epidemiological studies utilizing precise assessment tools can enhance the early detection and prevention of PAD in T2DM and improve the certainty of findings.Clinical Implication: the need for integrated care approaches that prioritize the screening and management of PAD in individuals with T2DM. Given the high prevalence and associated complications, healthcare providers should implement routine PAD assessments in diabetes care protocols. Future research should focus on longitudinal studies that explore the causal relationships between risk factors and the development of PAD in T2DM patients.

Keywords: peripheral artery disease, Lower Extremity, Diabetes Mellitus, sub-Saharan Africa, Type 2 dia betes mellitus

Received: 20 Jan 2025; Accepted: 26 May 2025.

Copyright: © 2025 Haile, Amsalu, Kassie, Asgedom, Azeze and gebrekidane. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

* Correspondence: Kirubel Eshetu Haile, College of Health Sciences and Medicine, Wolaita Sodo University, Sodo, Southern Nations, Nationalities, and Peoples' Region, Ethiopia

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