Peripheral vascular disease | Rerenga toto manauhea

For many people, peripheral vascular disease causes no symptoms, or they may develop slowly over time. For others, the most common symptom is painful, aching or tired legs with walking or exercise. This is called intermittent claudication and is due to the lack of blood flow. It always occurs with activity and gets better with rest. 

Other symptoms include:

Legs and feet

• hair loss
• changes in skin colour, such as turning pale or blue
• cramps
• chronic ulcers
• changes in temperature – one leg may feeler colder than the other
• slow growing toenails

Rest of your body

• erectile dysfunction in men
• transient ischaemic attack
• stroke.

Image credit: 123rf 

Peripheral vascular disease is caused by changes within your blood vessels. It’s usually due to atherosclerosis, which restricts blood flow to your organs, arms and legs.

You’re more at risk of developing peripheral vascular disease if you:

• smoke
• have diabetes
• are overweight
• have heart disease
• have high cholesterol
• have high blood pressure.

Your risk also increases with age and if you have a family history of atherosclerosis.

Your GP will usually diagnosis peripheral vascular disease based on your symptoms and a physical examination. They will check your pulse in different places around your body and look for any signs of reduced blood flow, such as hair loss or changes in skin colour or temperature to your legs.

They may perform a test called an ankle brachial pressure index, which compares the blood pressure of both arms to the blood pressure of both legs. If you have peripheral vascular disease the blood pressure in your legs will be much lower than your arms.

Depending on the severity of your peripheral vascular disease, your GP may begin treatment or refer you for further tests, such as an MRI or ultrasound, or to a vascular surgeon for further management.

Being diagnosed with peripheral vascular disease is a sign your blood vessels are unhealthy. It’s a type of cardiovascular disease and can lead to more serious problems, such as coronary artery disease, heart disease and stroke.

There’s no cure for peripheral vascular disease so treatment is aimed at stopping it from getting worse, managing your symptoms and reducing your risk of developing further complications.

Changes to your diet and improved lifestyle choices play a significant role in managing peripheral vascular disease. These include:

• if you smoke, quit
• exercise regularly
• eat a healthy diet
• maintain a healthy weight.

Your GP may recommend medications to help reduce your cholesterol and blood pressure and manage your atherosclerosis.

What we eat and how much physical activity we do throughout our life makes a big difference to our risk of developing peripheral vascular disease. Prevention is better than cure, so to minimise your risk:

• don’t smoke
• keep physically active
• eat a healthy diet
• have regular check-ups with your GP or nurse to monitor your blood pressure, cholesterol and diabetes risk.