SVS Foundation Launches September Vascular Health Step Challenge During PAD Awareness Month

September 1, 2023—The Society for Vascular Surgery (SVS) Foundation announced the launch of its second annual September Vascular Health Step Challenge to raise awareness about vascular health and promote the benefits of walking for overall well-being, while also raising funds to benefit low-income vascular patients. The campaign coincides with Peripheral Arterial Disease (PAD) Awareness Month and Healthy Aging Month in September.

According to the SVS Foundation, the Vascular Health Step Challenge encourages each participant to walk 60 miles during the month of September to help keep the body’s 60,000 miles of blood vessels healthy. Funds raised during the campaign support low-income vascular patients, ensuring that financial barriers do not hinder their access to vital treatments; money also will support the SVS Foundation’s research and prevention efforts.

More information and registration for the Vascular Health Step Challenge is available online at the SVS website. Also, a promotional video is available online at YouTube.

“The SVS Foundation invites the community to join our September Vascular Health Step Challenge and quite literally take steps toward better vascular health,” commented SVS President Joseph Mills, MD, the society’s press release. “PAD affects more than 10 million people in the United States but walking an average of 30 minutes or more each day can lower the risk of PAD. Together, we’re working to raise awareness, raise our step counts, and raise vital funds to help low-income PAD patients.”

SVS Foundation Chair Michael Dalsing, MD, added, “The Vascular Health Step Challenge is not just about walking; it’s about advocacy, awareness, and action. By participating, individuals become advocates for their own vascular health and spread awareness within their communities. PAD is a chronic disease affecting one in 20 Americans over age 60, in which plaque builds up in the arteries and blood flow becomes limited; when left untreated, PAD can lead to an increased risk for heart attack and stroke, amputation and even death.”