Did you know that you could have a potentially deadly disease and not even know it? When peripheral artery disease (PAD) initially presents it is a silent disease. Early on, there aren’t any symptoms that your arteries are becoming stiff and narrow. In fact, more than half of patients with PAD do not experience any symptoms at all.

It’s typically not until you’ve engaged in an activity that your body will start to tell you that the tissues are not getting enough oxygen. Claudication is cramping in the calves, ankles, or feet during activities like walking, or climbing stairs, that subsides at rest.

At Vascular Care Specialists of Los Angeles, Dr. Mathew Cheung and Dr. Peter Lin discuss what you should know about peripheral artery disease. Since many patients with this condition do not show any symptom in the first place, it is consider a silent disease. In this post, you will learn this silent disease, if untreated, can lead to leg amputation. However, there are man things you can do to prevent this disease and live a healthy life.

One of the challenging problems of tackling peripheral artery disease is that it is often silent. The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force doesn’t yet recommend checking seemingly healthy people for it. But it’s a good idea to be checked if you have leg pain while walking that goes away when you rest. An evaluation for PAD may also make sense if you have heart disease, carotid artery disease, or kidney disease, or if a parent or sibling has peripheral artery disease.

In the US, only one year after a major amputation the mortality rate is about 48%. Critical limb ischemia is an advanced form of PAD when the blood is unable to flow to the foot. If blood flow cannot be returned to the foot or leg, then surgical amputation may be considered. Early detection of PAD is crucial so that a doctor can intervene before the disease progresses to that point. Of all surgical amputations that occur, about 54% are the results of conditions that affect the flow of blood, like diabetes and PAD.

The four common risk factors for peripheral artery disease are:

1. High cholesterol
2. High blood pressure
3. Diabetes
4. Smoking

Better attention to these common health factors could go a long way to preventing a stealth condition known as peripheral artery disease (PAD).

About one-third of people with PAD have no signs or symptoms of it. Another third have vague symptoms such as low mobility or loss of strength that can be difficult to trace to PAD. The final third have clear symptoms, such as leg pain when walking, sores that don’t heal, coldness in a leg or foot, or, in men, problems getting or keeping an erection.

According to a clinical study published by Harvard-based researchers, prevention is important because PAD can cause widespread damage, limit activity, and sometimes lead to death. The study, which is one of the largest and longest of its kind, followed the health of almost 45,000 male health professionals for 25 years. In this group, the factors that most strongly influenced the development of PAD were the same “big four” that are largely responsible for heart disease and stroke: smoking, diabetes, high blood pressure, and high cholesterol. A whopping 96% of those diagnosed with PAD had one or more of these problems.

Individually, each factor doubled the risk of developing PAD. Men with all four were 16 times more likely to have developed PAD. Those with none of the factors were six times less likely to have developed it. The longer a man had diabetes or high cholesterol, or the longer or more he smoked, the higher the risk of developing PAD.

In some cases, a person with peripheral vascular disease does not have any symptoms until the condition is advanced and severe. Symptoms depend on which body part is deprived of sufficient blood, but may include:

• Intermittent pain (claudication), which may feel like cramps, muscle fatigue or heaviness (usually in the legs) •Worsening pain during exercise (usually in the legs)
• Easing of pain during rest (usually in the legs)
• Coldness of the affected body part
• Numbness
• Pins and needles
• Muscular weakness
• Blue or purple tinge to the skin
• Wounds that won’t heal (vascular ulcers)
• Blackened areas of skin or skin loss (gangrene).

The best way to prevent PAD or the progression of PAD is to reduce the symptoms. In most cases, this means a lifestyle change. Regular physical activity is often an effective treatment. Here are some useful tips to improve your lifestyle and reduce your risk for PAD.

1. Get active with regular physical activity

A peripheral artery disease exercise program is recommended for all patients living with PAD, but particularly for those with claudication, or poor circulation in the leg arteries due to plaque buildup. Exercise, combined with lifestyle changes, may slow or stop the progression of PAD. Potential benefits include:

• Reducing limb pain and symptoms
• Improving exercise ability
• Preventing or improving physical disability
• Decreasing the risk of cardiovascular events, such as heart attack and stroke

Although PAD reversal is not possible, regular physical activity can help relieve the symptoms of PAD. In the beginning, walking may cause pain. However, by alternating activity and rest in timed intervals, you’ll begin to build up the length of time that you can walk before feeling pain.

Experts recommend that PAD patients exercise in a monitored environment, like on a treadmill at a cardiac rehabilitation center. If you aren’t able to go to a cardiac rehab center, your doctor may recommend a community- or home-based program that’s appropriate for your condition. The American Heart Association also recommends that patients with PAD participate in structured exercise therapy (SET), which has been shown to produce better results than unsupervised training. Exercise should be tailored to each patient and should include specific instructions for the type, frequency, intensity, and duration. The most effective structured exercise is conducted in a hospital or outpatient facility.

2. Diet plays a role in slowing PAD

Two popular diets make eating healthy easier. These plans have been shown to prevent cardiovascular disease or decrease the progression.

• The Mediterranean Diet – The Mediterranean diet promotes high proportions of olive oil; legumes, such as peas, beans, and lentils; unrefined cereals; fruits; and vegetables. It also includes moderate to high amounts of fish, moderate amounts of dairy, such as cheese and yogurt, and wine. The plan allows very limited amounts of meat and meat products.
• The DASH (Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension) Diet – The DASH diet limits sodium and overall fat intake and restricts alcohol. There is strong evidence this plan reduces hypertension, cardiovascular disease risk, and cardiovascular disease progression. By eating a variety of nutritious foods from all of the food groups, you’ll ensure that your body gets the proper nutrients it needs. Be sure to read Nutrition Facts labels and stick to recommended portion sizes.

Before beginning any diet program, it’s important to consult your physician to determine if there are any health issues that may affect you while changing your eating habits.

3. Quit smoking

Smoking is one of the top PAD risk factors, followed by ethnicity, diabetes, poor kidney function, high blood pressure and high cholesterol. Smoking increases the risk of developing PAD two to six times, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The strong correlation between smoking and PAD has been the subject of research for more than 60 . In fact, 50 percent of PAD cases can be directly attributed to smoking. Additionally, current smokers are almost four times as likely to develop asymptomatic PAD as non-smokers. Additionally, it doesn’t take much to up your risk for developing PAD. Smoking even half a pack of cigarettes a day may increase your risk of having PAD by up to 50 percent.

At Vascular Care Specialists of Los Angeles, we strive to provide the best service, care, and results possible. If you have peripheral arterial disease and other circulation conditions, give us a call at 626-275-9566 to schedule an appointment. You can also visit us at www.vcsla.com for more