The clinical picture of peripheral vascular disease
Most people with peripheral vascular disease are asymptomatic. Symptomatic patients almost always have lower limb problems. The most common symptom is a severe dull cramping leg pain during walking and exercise, which is called intermittent claudication. This pain occurs during activity because the muscles require more oxygen while rest reduces the oxygen demand by muscles and relieves the pain. The pain site depends on the affected vessel; it may be in the buttocks, thighs, calves, or feet, but it is more common calves. It also may occur in one or both legs. Other symptoms may include leg fatigue, heaviness, and tightness.
Many people ignore these symptoms as an expected sign of aging, which may lead to worsening of the disease and dangerous complications. As the disease progresses, there is a further lack of oxygen supply to the tissues that may reach the degree that doesn’t meet the tissue needs at rest, which causes critical limb ischemia. critical limb ischemia leads to the following:
- The pain worsens to be at rest also and becomes severe enough to restrict any movement.
- Cold legs and color changes to be pale or blue
- Wasting of the leg muscles
- Numbness and tingling in legs
- Loss of hair in legs
- Thick and opaque nails
- Leg ulcers that don’t heal over the pressure sites, such as ankles
- Erectile dysfunction and impotence
- Severe ischemia impairs the healing of wounds, and unhealed wounds may lead to fatal infections of the bone or bloodstream.
- Finally, we can end in gangrene (tissue death), which may require amputation of the dead part to avoid the loss of the whole limb and septicemia.
Peripheral vascular disease can be a part of cardiovascular disease that may affect the heart and brain and cause fatal events like stroke and myocardial infarction; stroke incidence is higher in patients with peripheral vascular disease. Thus, if you felt any symptom of peripheral vascular disease, you should see your doctor and don’t ignore it. Early diagnosis and management of peripheral vascular disease prevent further damage to blood vessels and more tissue damage, which reduces the risk of tissue loss and life-threatening complications.
⇒ Now, let’s discuss how your doctor will diagnose you.
