William R Hiatt, Denver, USA, outlined what was achievable with TASC III at CX 34. He said TASC III was seeking to achieve a consensus between surgical and endovascular societies. “The response to TASC IIb was disappointing but current inter-societal engagement encouraging,” he noted.
On the question of whether it was possible to create a more integrated and clinically-relevant classification of peripheral arterial disease, he noted that TASC III would include the key components of: patient, limb and lesions.
He noted that TASC III would establish new standards for regulatory approval and reimbursement of new therapies. For critical limb ischaemia, it would expand on amputation-free survival to include healing of ischaemic ulcers, relief of ischaemic pain, avoidance of additional procedures and improvement in functional status, he said.
