Peripheral Arterial Disease: When Your Legs Are Trying to Tell You Something

Most people know that blocked arteries can cause a heart attack.

Many also know they can lead to a stroke.

What far fewer people realise is that the very same process can also affect the arteries in your legs.

It is called Peripheral Arterial Disease, often shortened to PAD, and although you’ve probably never heard much about it, it affects millions of people worldwide.

Like many of the conditions we’ve discussed in this series, it often develops quietly over many years. The warning signs are easy to dismiss as simply “getting older” or “being out of shape.”

Sometimes, your legs are actually giving you an early warning about your heart.

What is Peripheral Arterial Disease?

Your arteries are like a network of roads carrying oxygen-rich blood from your heart to every part of your body.

When these arteries become narrowed by fatty deposits, known as atherosclerosis, less blood reaches the muscles and tissues beyond the blockage.

If this narrowing occurs in the arteries supplying your legs, your leg muscles receive less oxygen, particularly during exercise when they need it most.

Imagine trying to water your garden with a hosepipe that has been partly squashed. Water still gets through, but not as much as you need.

The same thing happens with blood flow.

The most common symptom

The classic symptom is pain in the calf when walking.

You may notice that after walking a certain distance your calf begins to ache, tighten or cramp.

The interesting thing is what happens next.

You stop walking for a minute or two.

The pain disappears.

You start walking again.

A few minutes later, the pain returns.

This pattern is so typical that doctors have a special name for it: intermittent claudication.

The pain isn’t caused by a muscle injury.

It’s caused by muscles asking for more oxygen than the narrowed arteries can deliver.

Many people simply assume they are getting older or that they need to become fitter.

Unfortunately, that assumption can delay diagnosis.

It isn’t always painful

Not everyone develops the classic symptoms.

Some people simply notice their legs feel unusually tired.

Others complain that one foot always feels colder than the other.

Some develop slow-healing wounds or ulcers on their feet.

As the disease becomes more severe, pain may even occur while resting, particularly at night.

This is never something that should be ignored.

Why does it happen?

Peripheral arterial disease has exactly the same risk factors as heart attacks and strokes.

Smoking is by far one of the biggest.

Diabetes also greatly increases the risk because high blood sugar damages blood vessels over many years.

High blood pressure, high cholesterol, obesity and lack of physical activity all contribute.

Age also plays a role.

The important point is that PAD isn’t simply a problem affecting the legs.

It tells us that narrowing of the arteries may also be occurring elsewhere in the body.

Someone with PAD has a higher chance of developing heart disease and stroke.

That is why diagnosing it matters.

How is it diagnosed?

One of the simplest tests compares the blood pressure in your ankle with the blood pressure in your arm.

This is known as the Ankle-Brachial Pressure Index, or ABPI.

If blood pressure at the ankle is significantly lower than expected, it suggests reduced blood flow to the legs.

Further scans may then be arranged to identify where the narrowing is occurring.

The test itself is quick, painless and can provide valuable information.

Can it be treated?

Yes, and treatment usually begins with reducing the factors that caused it in the first place.

Stopping smoking is probably the single most effective step someone can take.

Controlling blood pressure, diabetes and cholesterol also helps reduce further damage.

Medicines that reduce the risk of blood clots may be prescribed, depending on the individual.

One treatment often surprises people.

Walking.

You might think exercise would make things worse because walking brings on the pain.

In fact, supervised walking programmes are one of the most effective treatments for many people with PAD.

By gradually increasing walking distance over time, the body can improve its ability to supply blood to the muscles through smaller blood vessels that develop around narrowed arteries.

It isn’t an overnight fix, but many people notice significant improvement after several months.

In more severe cases, procedures similar to those used to treat blocked heart arteries may be needed.

Doctors can sometimes widen narrowed leg arteries using balloons and stents, or bypass severely blocked sections with surgery.

Looking after your feet

This becomes particularly important if you also have diabetes.

Reduced blood flow means cuts, blisters and sores heal more slowly.

Checking your feet regularly, wearing properly fitting shoes and seeking medical advice promptly for wounds that aren’t healing can prevent serious complications.

Never ignore a wound simply because it isn’t painful.

Sometimes the absence of pain is actually part of the problem.

Don’t dismiss the signs

One of the biggest mistakes people make is blaming every ache and pain on ageing.

Getting older does not automatically mean you should develop pain every time you walk.

Our bodies do change with age, but persistent symptoms always deserve an explanation.

If your legs repeatedly force you to stop walking because of pain, don’t simply accept it as “one of those things.”

Mention it to your doctor.

It may not be peripheral arterial disease.

But if it is, identifying it early can protect much more than your legs.

A final thought

The body has a remarkable way of giving us clues when something isn’t quite right.

Sometimes it’s chest pain.

Sometimes it’s an irregular heartbeat.

Sometimes it’s breathlessness.

And sometimes it’s simply a calf muscle asking for more blood every time you walk to the local shop.

The message is the same.

Listen to your body.

It often speaks quietly long before it starts shouting.

Until next time, stay curious, stay informed and, above all, look after your health. It is one investment that will always pay dividends.

The Daily Durian (zaynp100@yahoo.com) is a content creator under the Newswav Creator programme, where you get to express yourself, be a citizen journalist, and at the same time monetize your content & reach millions of users on Newswav. Log in to creator.newswav.com and become a Newswav Creator now!

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