Who needs vascular and nerve testing

Who should be tested

Measura testing is for adults over 50 with a cardiovascular risk factor, everyone over 70, and anyone with high blood pressure, excess weight, a smoking history, diabetes or prediabetes. You do not need symptoms to qualify.

There is a defined group where measuring vascular, autonomic and metabolic function is worth doing before anything has gone visibly wrong. It is broader than most people expect.

Who should be screened for vascular and nerve problems?

Testing is aimed at six overlapping populations.

• Adults over 50 who carry a cardiovascular risk factor. One risk factor is enough. It does not have to be a diagnosis.
• Everyone over 70. Age alone qualifies, because the changes these assessments detect accumulate with time whether or not anything else is present.
• Anyone with high blood pressure. Hypertension damages small vessels and the autonomic control of blood pressure at the same time.
• Anyone carrying excess weight. Body composition, not the number on the scale, is what matters here.
• Anyone who smokes, or used to. Smoking is the single strongest modifiable risk factor for peripheral artery disease.
• Anyone with diabetes or prediabetes. Nerve and vessel changes begin before blood sugar readings look convincing.

Why does age alone qualify for testing?

Two of the assessments in the suite exist mainly because of what happens after 70. Peripheral artery disease prevalence rises steeply with age — in the wealthier countries surveyed it was estimated at about 5% of adults in their late forties and about 18% by the late eighties, measured by ankle-brachial index in a systematic review of community studies. Balance is the other. In a national survey of US adults aged 40 and over, 35.4% had measurable vestibular dysfunction, and those who also reported dizziness had twelve times the odds of falling.

Neither of those is something you notice in yourself gradually. Both are measurable in an hour.

Which symptoms strengthen the case for testing?

You do not need symptoms to qualify. But if any of these are present, the case for measuring rather than waiting is stronger.

Who does not need this testing?

A healthy adult in their twenties with no risk factors is not the target. Nor is anyone in an acute emergency — chest pain, sudden weakness, a cold and painful limb, or a sudden change in vision or speech needs an emergency department, not an appointment. Call 911.

If you are a clinician: the same subject written for the person ordering the test is at selection criteria for clinicians.

Frequently asked questions

I feel fine. Is there any point?

That is the population this was designed for. The changes these assessments detect are silent for years, which is the reason to measure rather than wait for a symptom. Why the risk group is drawn this way.

My doctor already checks my blood pressure and cholesterol.

Those are important and they are not the same measurements. Blood pressure tells you the pressure; it does not tell you how stiff the vessel wall has become or whether the small nerve fibers are intact. What these assessments add.

Is there an age at which it stops being useful?

No, but the reason shifts. Under 60 the emphasis is on finding modifiable change early; over 75 it moves toward function, balance and fall risk. Dizziness and the risk of falling.

Do I need a referral?

No. How referrals and reports work.

What are the symptoms of vascular disease in the feet?

Many people notice nothing for years. When signs of vascular or nerve trouble do appear in the feet, they include burning, tingling or numbness that is worse at night, skin that has stopped sweating or sweats oddly, cuts that heal slowly, cold feet or one foot colder than the other, and calf or thigh cramping on walking that stops with rest.

At what age is peripheral artery disease most common?

It becomes more common with every decade. In a systematic review of community studies in wealthier countries, peripheral artery disease measured by ankle-brachial index affected about 5% of adults in their late forties and about 18% by their late eighties. That steep rise is why everyone over 70 qualifies for Measura testing on age alone.

Is PAD an emergency?

The slow narrowing that testing looks for is not an emergency; it builds silently for years, which is the reason to measure it early. A cold and painful limb is different. That is an emergency, and so are chest pain, sudden weakness, or a sudden change in vision or speech. Call 911 or go to an emergency department instead of waiting for testing.

References

• Fowkes FGR, Rudan D, Rudan I, et al. Comparison of global estimates of prevalence and risk factors for peripheral artery disease in 2000 and 2010: a systematic review and analysis. Lancet. 2013;382(9901):1329–1340. doi:10.1016/S0140-6736(13)61249-0
• Agrawal Y, Carey JP, Della Santina CC, Schubert MC, Minor LB. Disorders of balance and vestibular function in US adults: data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, 2001–2004. Archives of Internal Medicine. 2009;169(10):938–944. doi:10.1001/archinternmed.2009.66

Medically reviewed by Dr. Gurpreet Singh Padda, MD, MBA, MHP, medical director of Measura. Last reviewed August 20, 2026.