For people living with diabetes, protecting the feet is about much more than comfort. Diabetes can affect nerves, blood vessels, wound healing, and the body’s ability to respond to injury. When diabetes occurs together with peripheral artery disease (PAD), a small foot problem can become more serious. PAD develops when arteries supplying the legs and […]
Leg pain that appears while walking can come from more than one source. Two conditions that may produce activity-related discomfort are peripheral artery disease (PAD) and sciatica or other spine-related nerve problems. Because the symptoms can overlap, people sometimes assume their pain is caused by a pinched nerve when circulation is part of the problem, […]
If your legs feel tired, heavy, cold, or uncomfortable, you may wonder whether there is a way to improve circulation. The answer depends on why blood flow is reduced in the first place. For people with peripheral artery disease (PAD), circulation problems are caused by narrowed arteries that limit blood flow to the legs and […]
If walking causes your legs to ache or cramp, being told to exercise may sound surprising. Yet structured exercise therapy is one of the core treatments for many people with symptomatic peripheral artery disease. The goal is not to ignore pain or force yourself through unsafe activity. It is to follow a planned exercise approach […]
Smoking affects far more than the lungs. Tobacco use can damage blood vessels throughout the body and is one of the most important risk factors for peripheral artery disease, or PAD. For people who already have PAD, continuing to smoke can also contribute to worsening vascular disease and increase the risk of serious cardiovascular and […]
A very specific type of leg pain can provide an important clue about your circulation. If your calf, thigh, hip, or buttock begins hurting when you walk but feels better after you stop for several minutes, the pattern may be intermittent claudication, one of the classic symptoms of peripheral artery disease. Why Does Walking Trigger […]
You walk through a grocery store, around the neighborhood, or across a parking lot and your calf begins to ache. You stop for a few minutes, the discomfort fades, and you continue walking. It can be tempting to blame this pattern on age. However, recurring leg pain while walking that improves with rest can be […]
Leg discomfort is easy to dismiss as getting older, being out of shape, or simply doing too much. But recurring pain or unusual changes in your legs and feet can sometimes be signs of peripheral artery disease, commonly called PAD. PAD develops when arteries supplying the legs and feet become narrowed, often because of plaque […]