3 Symptoms of Peripheral Artery Disease (PAD)

Before getting into the symptoms of Peripheral Artery Disease (PAD), we first need to understand this disease and what measures a person who is afflicted can follow to improve their health. In this article, we have collected all the information you need to know about Peripheral Artery Disease.

What is Peripheral Artery Disease (PAD)?

PAD, alternatively called peripheral arterial disease or peripheral vascular disease, is an occlusive disease that affects blood vessels situated outside the brain and heart. Here, peripheral means away from the heart. This disease is brought about by the occurrence of an atherosclerotic process, which is a disease where your arteries get filled with a plaque made up of cholesterol, fat, calcium, and other substances found in the blood. This causes the blood vessels to get narrow, which restricts the blood flow to the kidneys, stomach, arms, and mainly to the legs. Atherosclerosis that affects arteries of lower parts of the body can lead to limb ischemia, which occurs when blood supply is restricted to the tissues, causing deficiency of oxygen that is essential for the tissue to stay alive hence leading to amputation.

What Causes Peripheral Artery Disease (PAD)?

PAD is mostly caused by atherosclerosis disease. In this condition, arteries narrow down due to the accumulation of plaque on the artery walls. Arteries are basically blood vessels that carry blood from the heart to the body. They are layered with a thin layer of cells called the endothelium. When this layer gets destroyed, it allows a harmful type of cholesterol to accumulate in the wall of the artery. With time, plaque made of white blood cells, calcium, cholesterol, and other substances builds up and grows in size over time, which clogs the artery, disturbing the blood flow in the body. If the peripheral arteries remain blocked, it causes Peripheral Artery Disease. Infrequently, PAD can be caused by blood vessel inflammation, limb injury, and abnormal anatomy of your muscles, ligaments, or radiation exposure.

Symptoms of Peripheral Artery Disease (PAD)

PAD is frequently asymptomatic, meaning the disease produces or shows no symptoms. It is also often underdiagnosed and undertreated. The very first sign of atherosclerosis that causes PAD can usually begin during adolescence when streaks of white blood cells appear on the walls of the artery. There are no visible signs till the blood flow gets very restricted, or the plaque ruptures. This can take a long time to occur. The three cardinal symptoms of PAD include;

1. Claudication

Claudication is a type of pain that occurs by a shortage of blood flow to parts of muscles during exercise. According to the asperity of the condition, like walking at a specific pace or for a certain amount of time, the pain varies. This condition is called intermittent claudication since the pain is not constant. This pain usually starts during exercise, and it ends when you rest. If the claudication worsens, the pain may also occur during the resting period. The patient needs to understand the leg pain. Many people tend to disregard this leg pain is a common sign of aging. If the source of your pain occurs in the muscles and not in the joints, then you must refer to your healthcare advisor since you might have risks of PAD.

2. Ischemic rest pain

This burning sensation kind of pain usually occurs in the arch, ball, and toes of the foot of the person afflicted with PAD during recumbent position. The pain worsens at night when the patient is at sleep due to loss of blood flow, which is assisted through gravity when the patient is in the position where the feet are on the ground. This pain is agonizing enough to disrupt the patient during their sleep. They should hang their legs over the bed and dangle them or take a walk in the room to relieve the pain slightly for the time.

A wound is considered as non-healing if it does not respond within a trial period of 12-weeks, followed by constant therapy. Non-healing wounds are usually followed with ischemic rest pain, followed by Gangrene or tissue necrosis commonly found on toes. They develop due to low blood supply to the tissues.

3. Physical Symptoms

Symptoms vary from patient to patient. Some patients experience the pain aforementioned, while some patients may also observe physical changes in their abdominal parts of the body. Symptoms of PAD are rarely obvious in patients; hence it is difficult to deter this disease in most patients. There are a few possible symptoms that can be physically observed like;

They may start losing hair on their feet and legs,
The growth of hair and toenails may get very slow,
One foot or leg might feel colder than the other or both may feel colder compared to the rest of the body,
The skin on their legs may appear paler or shiny or maybe even bluish,
Difficult finding pulse in their legs or feet,
Impotence in men; difficulty in keeping up an erection (Erectile dysfunction)

Possible treatment options of PAD

Treatments of PAD mainly aim to reduce the symptoms and to stop the disease from worsening. Healthcare professionals suggest the patients make lifestyle changes, including:

Adding physical activities into your daily routine and gradually increasing the duration
Making a few adjustments in diets of patients who have elevated levels of cholesterol, and substituting with a diet with unsaturated fats, fruits, and vegetables.
By quitting smoking since the tobacco smoke greatly increases the risk of cardiovascular diseases
Doctors usually prescribe statins to lower cholesterol and other medications for high blood pressure or prevention of blood clots
Maintaining a healthy weight and by managing diabetes

Outlook

It is extremely crucial to see a specialist if you experience leg pain or any other symptoms mentioned above; dismissing these signs can lead to a high risk of cardiovascular diseases. If approached to the right doctor on time, symptoms of PAD can be easily reversed by medications and a few lifestyle changes. If you start experiencing any of the symptoms mentioned above, make an appointment with the experts at South Florida CardioVascular Specialist.