Exercise Stress Testing Is a Useful Adjunct in the Evaluation of Patients With Claudication and Normal Ankle-Brachial Index

A 45-year-old man presented with bilateral lower extremity claudication and was evaluated for lower extremity peripheral arterial disease. Ankle-brachial indices (ABIs) were performed with exercise stress testing. Resting ABI was normal, with postexercise arterial testing revealing a significant drop in ankle pressures, suggesting moderate proximal atherosclerotic vascular occlusive disease. It is important that sonographers are sufficiently trained to determine true claudication symptoms, and lab protocols should be established to effectively appropriate exercise stress testing when necessary.