When Is Leg Pain Caused by Artery Disease?

Calf pain that begins after a few steps and eases with rest (claudication) is a typical sign of arterial narrowing.

Cold feet, color change or a wound that does not heal call for prompt specialist assessment. This article is general information; diagnosis requires an examination.

What is claudication? It is pain that occurs when the leg muscles do not receive enough blood while walking; it usually starts in the calf, builds up after a few hundred meters and eases within minutes of rest. It tends to return at the same distance each time. With narrowing in the hip and thigh arteries, pain can also be felt in the buttock and thigh.

Not every leg pain comes from the arteries. Nerve compression from a herniated disc, joint and muscle disease or vein problems can also cause leg pain. Features that point to an arterial cause are onset at a certain walking distance, quick relief with rest, a cold leg, weak foot pulses, hair and nail changes and wounds that do not heal.

Risk factors: smoking, diabetes, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, older age and a family history of vascular disease. Quitting smoking, walking regularly and keeping blood sugar and blood pressure under control both ease symptoms and slow progression of the disease.

Diagnosis needs an examination, the ankle-brachial index and color Doppler ultrasound; CT or MR angiography is added when needed. If symptoms continue despite lifestyle changes and medication, or if pain is present at rest, opening the artery without incision with a balloon and stent is considered.