Your Health Matters: Local News
Do You Suffer from Peripheral Arterial Disease (PAD)?
Tools
Story Updated: Nov 20, 2008
Peripheral Arterial Disease (PAD) affects millions of Americans each year, causing the blood vessels of the abdomen and legs to become narrowed or blocked and preventing blood from flowing to the lower extremities. Symptoms may include pain, difficulty walking, numbness, and cuts or sores that do not heal.
Symptoms and Causes
Over 10 million people are believed to have PAD. Even more alarming is that data suggests that nearly 4 million people with symptoms go untreated every year. Although symptoms are often mistakenly blamed on arthritis, diabetes, pinched nerves and old age, it is estimated that 12-17% of people over 50 years of age have PAD. In fact, this arterial disease is more likely to occur with age and tends to be more common in people who are over 70. In addition, smoking, diabetes, hypertension, heart problems and high cholesterol increase the risks. Unfortunately, PAD is also responsible for almost 150,000 amputations each year.
Alarmingly, many people with PAD have minimal to no symptoms. By the time patients have problems or complaints, they are likely to have severe to critical narrowing of the arteries in the legs. Patients at this stage can go on to blockages that put them at risk of losing one or both legs in severe cases. In fact, studies show that patients who lose one or both legs due to PAD are at an increased risk of death over the next five years, as compared to those patients treated for PAD who do not have an amputation.
Other Complications
When left untreated, PAD has also been associated with an increased chance of heart attack or stroke. Research indicates that people with PAD are four times as likely to have a heart attack and twice as likely to suffer from a stroke. The data is even worse for those people who have shown symptoms – a risk of dying from cardiovascular disease that is 15 times greater and a 1 in 4 chance of dying within two years of diagnosis.
Good News
PAD is detectable and often treatable. Your primary care provider can often detect PAD based upon a physical exam and/or an easy, painless test. Treatment can be as simple as a better lifestyle regimen that includes exercise, dietary changes and smoking cessation. In more advanced cases, it may be necessary to medication, tiny incisions in the groin or an occasional bypass surgery.
The Board-certified specialists at Mid Illini Surgical Associates provide the latest cutting-edge surgical and non-surgical treatments for peripheral arterial disease. Patients throughout Illinois have benefited from our treatments and in some cases avoided amputations. If you think you have PAD, call your primary care provider for a referral to our experts.
Symptoms and Causes
Over 10 million people are believed to have PAD. Even more alarming is that data suggests that nearly 4 million people with symptoms go untreated every year. Although symptoms are often mistakenly blamed on arthritis, diabetes, pinched nerves and old age, it is estimated that 12-17% of people over 50 years of age have PAD. In fact, this arterial disease is more likely to occur with age and tends to be more common in people who are over 70. In addition, smoking, diabetes, hypertension, heart problems and high cholesterol increase the risks. Unfortunately, PAD is also responsible for almost 150,000 amputations each year.
Alarmingly, many people with PAD have minimal to no symptoms. By the time patients have problems or complaints, they are likely to have severe to critical narrowing of the arteries in the legs. Patients at this stage can go on to blockages that put them at risk of losing one or both legs in severe cases. In fact, studies show that patients who lose one or both legs due to PAD are at an increased risk of death over the next five years, as compared to those patients treated for PAD who do not have an amputation.
Other Complications
When left untreated, PAD has also been associated with an increased chance of heart attack or stroke. Research indicates that people with PAD are four times as likely to have a heart attack and twice as likely to suffer from a stroke. The data is even worse for those people who have shown symptoms – a risk of dying from cardiovascular disease that is 15 times greater and a 1 in 4 chance of dying within two years of diagnosis.
Good News
PAD is detectable and often treatable. Your primary care provider can often detect PAD based upon a physical exam and/or an easy, painless test. Treatment can be as simple as a better lifestyle regimen that includes exercise, dietary changes and smoking cessation. In more advanced cases, it may be necessary to medication, tiny incisions in the groin or an occasional bypass surgery.
The Board-certified specialists at Mid Illini Surgical Associates provide the latest cutting-edge surgical and non-surgical treatments for peripheral arterial disease. Patients throughout Illinois have benefited from our treatments and in some cases avoided amputations. If you think you have PAD, call your primary care provider for a referral to our experts.
