About Us: Awards

Washington, DC (September 18, 2007) – The Peripheral Arterial Disease (PAD) Coalition presented the Coalition’s inaugural Best PAD Research Award to Matthew Allison, MD, MPH at the organization’s Fourth Annual Meeting. The Best PAD Research Award honors the work of investigators and acknowledges the creation of new clinical research that is relevant to the understanding of peripheral arterial disease.

Dr. Allison is currently an Assistant Professor, Family & Preventive Medicine at the University of California San Diego. Dr. Allison and his colleagues were recognized for their work on the research study, The Effect of Novel Cardiovascular Risk Factors on the Ethnic-Specific Odds for Peripheral Arterial Disease in the Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis (MESA), published in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology (J. Am. Coll. Cardiol., Sep 2006; 48: 1190 – 1197). The study examined the association of non-traditional cardiovascular risk factors such as interleukin-6, fibrinogen, D-dimer, and homocysteine with PAD and the extent to which these novel risk factors impact PAD risk in different ethnic groups. Study co-authors are Michael H. Criqui, MD, MPH, Robyn L. McClelland, PhD, JoAnn M. Scott, MS, Mary M. McDermott, MD, Kiang Liu, PhD, Aaron R. Folsom, MD, Alain G. Bertoni, MD, A. Richey Sharrett, MD, DrPH, Shunichi Homma, MD and Sujata Kori, MD.

Peripheral arterial disease occurs when arteries in the legs become narrowed or clogged with fatty deposits, reducing blood flow to the legs. This can result in leg muscle pain when walking, disability, amputation and a poor quality of life. Blocked arteries found in people with PAD can be a warning sign that other arteries, including those in the heart and brain, may also be blocked - increasing the risk of a heart attack or stroke.

Traditional risk factors for PAD include advancing age, history of smoking, diabetes, African American ethnicity, high blood pressure, abnormal cholesterol, and personal history of heart disease or stroke.

While African Americans are at increased risk for PAD, it is unknown whether this risk is inherited or due to exposure of certain risk factors. The Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis (MESA), sponsored by the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, involved more than 6,800 men and women from six communities in the United States. After adjusting for traditional and novel risk factors, Dr. Allison’s analysis confirmed that African-Americans have a 50% increased risk for developing PAD suggesting that unknown factors may be responsible for ethnic differences in PAD. This study also confirmed a lower risk of PAD in Chinese and Hispanic individuals.

“On behalf of the PAD Coalition, we are delighted to present this prestigious award to Dr. Matthew Allison,” said Alan T. Hirsch, M.D., Chair of the P.A.D. Coalition, Professor of Epidemiology and Community Health at the University of Minnesota School of Public Health, and Director of the Vascular Medicine Program at the Minneapolis Heart Institute. “Research that provides insight into causal factors of this preventable disease is critical, particularly as we try to elucidate why ethnic-based PAD health disparities exist.”

The Peripheral Arterial Disease (P.A.D.) Coalition is an alliance of leading health organizations, vascular health professional societies, and government agencies united to raise public and health professional awareness about lower extremity P.A.D. The Coalition is working with the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute on a national campaign, “Stay in Circulation: Take Steps to Learn about PAD” (www.aboutpad.org). Established in 2004, the P.A.D. Coalition is coordinated by the Vascular Disease Foundation (www.vdf.org), a national, not-for-profit section 501(c)(3) organization.

The P.A.D. Coalition is supported by the following national sponsors: the Bristol-Myers Squibb/Sanofi Pharmaceuticals Partnership; Cordis Endovascular, a division of Cordis Corporation; Bard Peripheral Vascular; BioMedix; Cook, Inc; Edwards Lifesciences; W.L. Gore and Associates; Medtronic; Omron; and Summit Doppler.

For more information on PAD, visit www.padcoalition.org.