CLI Global Society

Working To Prevent Amputations & Death Due To CLI

The Critical Limb Ischemia (CLI) Global Society’s mission is to improve the quality of life by preventing amputations and death due to CLI. The Society collaborates with a coalition of like-minded organizations that share an interest in CLI to address treatment, outcomes, coding, and reimbursement to globally improve care and prevent amputations for patients with CLI.

The Society was formed by passionate leaders to address the unmet need of CLI on January 11, 2016 and received 501(c)(6) status on June 20, 2016.

Why is CLI a problem?

The CLI Global Society recognizes the following contributing factors to the challenge of CLI:

• Lack of consensus on the definition of CLI
• Lack of awareness within the healthcare community and general public
• CLI morbidity and mortality are akin to the most aggressive cancer diagnoses
• Limited evidence-based research
• Lack of consensus on best methods to prevent, diagnosis, treat, and rehabilitate
• Limited number of dedicated CLI specialists
• No diagnosis code for CLI
• Costs for the treatment of CLI are among the greatest health care expenditure challenges today¹
• Amputation often remains a first line treatment and results in major disability, loss of work productivity, and burdens to family and colleagues

_{1. Goodney PP, Tarulli M, Faerber AE, Schanzer A, Zwolak RM. Fifteen-year trends in lower limb amputation, revascularization and preventive measures among Medicare patients. JAMA Surg.2015;150:84-86.}

How can we address the problem?

The CLI Global Society recognizes and supports a concerted effort to create change by:

• Creating and facilitating a new definition of CLI
• Amplifying public and health professional awareness of CLI
• Creating a public and professional effort to prevent CLI
• Increasing clinical cooperation and information sharing in the management of CLI
• Improving the CLI standard of care for prevention, diagnosis, treatment and rehabilitation
• Reducing time from symptom onset to provision of definitive care for CLI
• Reducing variability in delivery of care that promotes preventable amputations
• Identifying strategies to correct disparities in access and treatment to quality CLI care
• Advocating for team-based programs that simultaneously address awareness, management, and treatment of CLI
• Advocating for coverage and reimbursement for CLI therapy
• Partnering with clinicians, hospitals, patients, and industry to have immediate impact
• Preventing amputations and death due to critical limb ischemia