Peripheral artery disease, often called PAD, is a common health problem where the blood vessels that carry blood to your arms or legs become too narrow.
This usually happens in the legs. When the arteries get too narrow, less blood can reach your muscles and skin. As a result, your legs may not get enough blood, especially when you are moving around and your muscles need more oxygen.
One of the most common signs of PAD is called claudication. This means you might feel pain, cramping, or tiredness in your legs or arms when you walk or exercise. Usually, the pain goes away when you stop and rest.
Most often, people feel this pain in their calf muscles, but sometimes it can also happen in the thighs or buttocks. In some cases, the pain can get so bad that it becomes hard to walk even short distances.
There are other signs of PAD too. Some people feel numbness or weakness in their legs. Others notice that one leg or foot feels colder than the other. You might also see sores on your toes, feet, or legs that don’t heal properly.
Sometimes the color of the skin on your legs changes, and hair might grow more slowly or even fall out. In very serious cases, PAD can cause gangrene, which means the tissue dies. This can lead to needing surgery to remove part of the leg or foot if it’s not treated quickly.
PAD is more likely to happen as people get older. It is especially common in people who smoke, or those who have diabetes, high blood pressure, or high cholesterol. Having a family history of blood vessel problems can also increase your risk.
These health problems can damage your arteries by causing fatty deposits to build up inside them, a condition called atherosclerosis. This buildup makes the arteries narrower and harder for blood to flow through.
Doctors usually diagnose PAD by checking your pulse in your legs and doing a test called the ankle-brachial index, or ABI. This test compares the blood pressure in your ankle with the blood pressure in your arm.
If the pressure is much lower in your ankle, it could mean you have PAD. Other tests like ultrasound scans, CT scans, or MRAs (magnetic resonance angiography) can also help doctors see how blood is moving through your arteries.
Treating PAD focuses on making symptoms better and stopping the disease from getting worse. One of the most important things you can do is to stop smoking if you smoke. Smoking damages blood vessels and makes PAD worse.
Regular exercise, especially walking, is also very helpful. Walking programs can train your body to use oxygen more efficiently and reduce leg pain over time. Eating a healthy diet that is low in saturated and trans fats also helps protect your blood vessels.
Sometimes, people need medicine to help with PAD. Doctors may prescribe drugs to lower blood pressure and cholesterol or to prevent blood clots. Medicines called statins are often used because they lower cholesterol and reduce the risk of heart attacks and strokes. In some cases, people may need procedures to open up the blocked arteries.
One common procedure is angioplasty, where doctors use a small balloon to open the artery and sometimes place a stent to keep it open. If that does not work, bypass surgery can be done to create a new path for blood to flow around the blockage.
Supervised exercise programs or cardiac rehab programs can be very helpful too. These programs give people a safe way to exercise more and gradually improve their ability to walk without pain.
In short, PAD is a serious disease, but it can be managed. Knowing the symptoms and getting the right treatment can make a big difference. With healthy habits, good medical care, and sometimes special procedures, people with PAD can feel better, stay active, and lower their risk of serious problems in the future.
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