Exercise Therapy for Peripheral Artery Disease

Supervised Exercise Therapy for Patients with Peripheral Artery Disease

Patient with peripheral artery disease receives supervised exercise therapy.BIDMC's Vascular Medicine Program offers supervised exercise therapy (SET) to help patients with peripheral artery disease manage leg pain when exercising (intermittent claudication). The 12-week program, which is covered by Medicare and most private insurers, consists of interval walking on a treadmill under the supervision of a specially trained exercise or physical therapist. For patients who are unable to use a treadmill due to orthopedic limitations, alternative exercises are available including arm ergometry.

Prospective patients are evaluated in BIDMC's Vascular Medicine Clinic to optimize medical therapy for PAD and assure they can safely exercise from a cardiac perspective. Once they have been cleared to participate, the SET program consists of three exercise sessions per week for a total of 12 weeks. An additional 12 weeks of coverage is available following a new referral.

Exercise therapy is available at:

  • Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center – Boston
  • Beth Israel Deaconess HealthCare – Chestnut Hill, Chelsea, Lexington
  • Beth Israel Deaconess Hospital – Plymouth

Physicians – To refer a patient for a SET evaluation:

Place an order in OMR under the Testing/Services section by selecting the bullet point "Supervised Exercise Therapy for PAD."

Email us with questions or for referral assistance.

Safety measures

  • Patients are screened twice for COVID-19 symptoms before their appointment.
  • Patients are required to wear masks.
  • Patients are seen individually (no group therapy).
  • All equipment is cleaned immediately after each patient use.
  • Telehealth is available for patients who prefer not to attend in-person.