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Arterial embolism

• Overview
• Symptoms
• Treatment
• Prevention

Symptoms:

Symptoms may begin abruptly or slowly depending on the size of the embolus and the extent to which it blocks the blood flow.

Symptoms of an arterial embolism in the arms or legs may include:

• Muscle pain in the affected area
• Muscle spasm in the affected area
• Numbness and tingling in the arm or leg
• Pale color of arm or leg
• Decreased or absent pulse in the extremity
• Cold arm or leg
• Lack of movement of the extremity
• Weakness of arm or leg
• Fingers or hands feels cool
• Loss of muscle function

Later symptoms:

• Blisters
• Skin erosion ( ulcer )
• Tissue death (necrosis; skin is dark and damaged)
• Sloughing of skin

Symptoms of a clot in an organ vary with the organ involved but may include:

• Pain
• Temporarily decreased organ function
• Ischemia (lack of oxygen)
• Infarction (tissue death)

Signs and tests:

There may be decreased or absent pulse, and decreased or absent blood pressure in the arm or leg. There may be signs of tissue death or gangrene.

Tests to diagnose arterial embolism or reveal the source of emboli may include:

• Doppler ultrasound exam of an extremity
• Transcranial Doppler
• Echocardiogram
• Transesophageal echocardiography (TEE)
• Myocardial contrast echocardiography (MCE)
• MRI
• Angiography of the affected extremity or organ
• Renal arteriography
• Extremity arteriography
• Plethysmography
• Duplex Doppler/ultrasound exam of extremity

This disease may also alter the results of the following tests:

• Isotope study
• Platelet aggregation test
• Factor VIII assay
• Euglobulin lysis time (ELT)
• Plasminogen activator inhibitor-1 (PAI-1) activity
• Tissue-type plasminogen activator (t-PA) levels

• Review Date: 6/1/2006
• Reviewed By: Glenn Gandelman, MD, MPH, Assistant Clinical Professor of Medicine, New York Medical College, Valhalla, NY. Review provided by VeriMed Healthcare Network.

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