Introduction: Venous leg ulcers (VLUs) are the final stage of chronic venous insufficiency. This study aims to characterize the association between cardiovascular diseases and VLU.
Methods: A multicentric case-control study analyzed 17,788 patients between 2015 and 2020. Cases were matched (1:2) by age and sex, and odds ratios (OR) were analyzed with conditional logistic regressions adjusted by risk factors.
Results: The prevalence of VLU was 15.2%. 2390 cases were analyzed. Diseases found to be associated with VLU were atrial fibrillation (OR, 1.21; 95% CI: 1.03-1.42), pulmonary hypertension (OR, 1.45; 95% CI: 1.06-2.00), right heart failure (OR, 1.27; 95% CI: 1.13-1.43), peripheral artery disease (OR, 2.21; 95% CI: 1.90-2.56), and history of pulmonary embolism (OR, 1.45; 95% CI: 1.06-2.00).
Conclusions: Certain cardiovascular conditions showed an association with VLU. Further studies are warranted to evaluate the effect that treating concomitant cardiovascular diseases might exert on the natural history of venous leg ulcers.
Keywords: atrial fibrillation; heart failure; pulmonary hypertension; right heart failure; venous leg insufficiency; venous leg ulcers.