Home > Medical Reference > Patient Education

Ask the Expert

Get answers to your Interventional Radiology questions.

Note: This is for informational purposes only. Doctors cannot provide a diagnosis or individual treatment advice via e-mail. Please consult your physician about your specific health care concerns.

Please install flash player to see this video.

Peripheral artery disease and intermittent claudication - Complications

Description

An in-depth report on the causes, diagnosis, and treatment of peripheral artery disease (PAD).

Alternative Names

Peripheral arterial disease; PAD; Peripheral vascular disease;

Complications:

Coronary Artery Disease and Stroke

Patients with peripheral artery disease (PAD) have the same risk of death from heart events or stroke as people already diagnosed with heart disease. The risk increases as PAD gets worse. The worse the leg condition, the poorer the overall health of the patient.

If patients have blood clots and blockages in other arteries (brain, heart) as well as the legs, the risk for any vascular complication involving the heart, the brain, or the leg arteries increases much more.

Acute Occlusion

In rare cases, blood clots can develop suddenly in a major artery in the leg -- a condition called acute occlusion. Symptoms include numbness, pain, coolness, pale color, lack of pulse in the artery, and weakness. This is a very serious event, which can lead to amputation or even loss of life. Treatment options include clot-busting drugs delivered to the blockage or surgery to remove the clot.

Poor Physical and Mental Functioning

Peripheral artery disease can significantly impair daily physical functioning. Claudication pain severely limits physical activity. Even worse, intermittent claudication increases the risk for falling, usually because of unsteadiness, regardless of the severity of PAD. Intermittent claudication and PAD are also associated with mental decline.

Resources

www.padcoalition.org -- Peripheral Arterial Disease Coalition
www.nhlbi.nih.gov -- National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute
www.americanheart.org -- American Heart Association
www.acc.org -- American College of Cardiology
www.diabetes.org -- American Diabetes Association
www.vdf.org -- Vascular Disease Foundation
www.sirweb.org -- Society of Interventional Radiology

References

Aboyans V, Criqui MH, Denenberg JO, Knoke JD, Ridker PM, Fronek A. Risk factors for progression of peripheral arterial disease in large and small vessels. Circulation. 2006 Jun 6;113(22):2623-9.

Arain FA, Cooper LT Jr. Peripheral arterial disease: diagnosis and management. Mayo Clin Proc. 2008 Aug;83(8):944-49; quiz 949-50.

Aung PP, Maxwell HG, Jepson RG, Price JF, Leng GC. Lipid-lowering for peripheral arterial disease of the lower limb. Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2007 Oct 17;(4):CD000123.

Collins R, Burch J, Cranny G, Aguiar-Ibáñez R, Craig D, Wright K, et al. Duplex ultrasonography, magnetic resonance angiography, and computed tomography angiography for diagnosis and assessment of symptomatic, lower limb peripheral arterial disease: systematic review. BMJ. 2007 Jun 16;334(7606):1257. Epub 2007 Jun 4

Creager MA and Libby P. Peripheral arterial disease. In: Libby P, Bonow RO, Mann DL, Zipes DP, eds. Libby: Braunwald's Heart Disease: A Textbook of Cardiovascular Medicine. 8th ed. Saunders; 2007:chap 57.

Garg PK, Tian L, Criqui MH, Liu K, Ferrucci L, Guralnik JM, et al. Physical activity during daily life and mortality in patients with peripheral arterial disease. Circulation. 2006 Jul 18;114(3):242-8.

Kikano GE, Brown MT. Antiplatelet therapy for atherothrombotic disease: an update for the primary care physician. Mayo Clin Proc. 2007 May;82(5):583-93.

McDermott MM, Ades P, Guralnik JM, Dyer A, Ferrucci L, Liu K, et al. Treadmill exercise and resistance training in patients with peripheral arterial disease with and without intermittent claudication: a randomized controlled trial. JAMA. 2009 Jan 14;301(2):165-74.

Met R, Bipat S, Legemate DA, Reekers JA, Koelemay MJ. Diagnostic performance of computed tomography angiography in peripheral arterial disease: a systematic review and meta-analysis. JAMA. 2009 Jan 28;301(4):415-24.

Saw J, Bhatt DL, Moliterno DJ, Brener SJ, Steinhubl SR, Lincoff AM, et al. The influence of peripheral arterial disease on outcomes: a pooled analysis of mortality in eight large randomized percutaneous coronary intervention trials. J Am Coll Cardiol. 2006 Oct 17;48(8):1567-72.

Sobel M, Verhaeghe R; American College of Chest Physicians; American College ofChest Physicians. Antithrombotic therapy for peripheral artery occlusive disease: American College of Chest Physicians Evidence-Based Clinical Practice Guidelines (8th Edition). Chest. 2008 Jun;133(6 Suppl):815S-843S.

Steg PG, Bhatt DL, Wilson PWF, D’Agostino R, Ohman EM, Rother, J. One-year cardiovascular event rates in outpatients with atherothrombosis. JAMA. Mar 21 2007;29(11)7:1197-1206.

Warfarin Antiplatelet Vascular Evaluation Trial Investigators, Anand S, Yusuf S, Xie C, Pogue J, Eikelboom J, et al. Oral anticoagulant and antiplatelet therapy and peripheral arterial disease. N Engl J Med. 2007 Jul 19;357(3):217-27.

Reviewed last on: 5/13/2009
Harvey Simon, MD, Editor-in-Chief, Associate Professor of Medicine, Harvard Medical School; Physician, Massachusetts General Hospital. Also reviewed by David Zieve, MD, MHA, Medical Director, A.D.A.M., Inc.

The information provided herein should not be used during any medical emergency or for the diagnosis or treatment of any medical condition. A licensed medical professional should be consulted for diagnosis and treatment of any and all medical conditions. Call 911 for all medical emergencies. Links to other sites are provided for information only -- they do not constitute endorsements of those other sites. © 1997- A.D.A.M., Inc. Any duplication or distribution of the information contained herein is strictly prohibited.