Walking may be the best primary treatment for intermittent claudication
3-month supervised exercise programme (SEP) should be offered as a first-line therapy for IC;

UK: Intermittent claudication (IC) is pain or discomfort in the muscles of the calf, thigh or buttock that occurs during walking and is relieved by rest. It affects 4% of people over 60 years of age and is the most common symptom of peripheral arterial disease (PAD).
For people with IC, the goals of treatment are twofold: (1) secondary prevention of cardiovascular disease through the management of risk factors (eg, tobacco use, dyslipidemia, diabetes, hypertension, and physical inactivity); (2) improving functional status, with treatment options including exercise training, revascularisation and vasodilator therapy.
"The condition is underdiagnosed and undertreated despite it being common and associated with mobility limitation and an increased risk of heart attack, stroke, amputation, and death," states co-author Garry Tew of Northumbria University in Newcastle, UK.
In 2012, the UK's National Institute for Health and Care Excellence published a clinical guideline on the diagnosis and management of PAD. This guideline recommended that a 3-month supervised exercise programme (SEP) should be offered as a first-line therapy for IC and that revascularisation and vasodilator therapy should only be considered if exercise provides insufficient symptom relief.
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