Facts to Know

Acupuncture Allergies Alzheimer's Disease Androgen Anxiety Disorders Asthma Atherosclerosis Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder Bacterial Vaginosis Biofeedback Bipolar Disorder Birth Control Pills Blood Donation and Transfusion Breast Augmentation and Reduction Breast Cancer Breastfeeding Breast Reconstruction Caregiving Cervical Cancer Chiropractic Chlamydia Cholesterol Chronic Fatigue Syndrome Clinical Trials Colon Cancer Contraception Depression Diabetes Dry Eye Syndrome Eating Disorders Endometriosis Epilepsy Estrogen Fibroids Fibromyalgia Fitness Flu/Colds Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease (GERD) Genetic Testing Genital Herpes Glaucoma Gonorrhea Health Insurance Heart Disease Hepatitis High Blood Pressure HIV/AIDS Homeopathy Human Papillomavirus Hypnosis Hysterectomy Incontinence Infertility Irritable Bowel Syndrome Legal Health Tools Liposuction Lung Cancer Lupus Macular Degeneration Medication Safety Menopause Menstrual Disorders Metabolic Syndrome Migraine Multiple Sclerosis Naturopathy Nonsurgical Aesthetic Procedures Nutrition Obesity Ocular Allergies Oral Health Osteoarthritis Osteopathic Medicine Osteoporosis Ovarian Cancer Overactive Bladder Pain Management Pelvic Organ Prolapse Pelvic Pain Peripheral Arterial Disease Polycystic Ovary Syndrome Pregnancy Premenstrual Syndrome Preparing for Surgery Progesterone Rheumatoid Arthritis Schizophrenia Scleroderma Sexual Dysfunction Sinusitis Sjogren's Syndrome Skin Cancer Skin Health Sleep Disorders Smoking Stress Stroke Substance Abuse Tai Chi Teen Health Thyroid Disorders Trichomoniasis Urinary Tract Conditions Urinary Tract Infection Uterine Cancer Varicose Veins Violence Against Women Vulvodynia Weight Management Yeast Infections Yoga

1. Peripheral arterial disease (PAD) is primarily caused by atherosclerosis, or hardening of the arteries.

2. An estimated 20 percent of people over 70 may suffer from PAD. Unfortunately, many of them consider PAD's leg pain as simply "part of getting older" and don't get treatment.

3. PAD is associated with a high short-term risk of heart attack and stroke and a very low risk of development of non-healing wounds, gangrene and amputation.

4. For most individuals with claudication, a program of supervised exercise may be all that is required to improve the symptoms of PAD. Regular exercise is the most consistently effective treatment of PAD because it reconditions weakened muscles, helps decrease buildup of cholesterol, improves blood pressure, improves diabetes control, assists in weight-loss efforts and helps maintain healthy circulation.

5. Health insurance coverage for enrollment in such programs remains severely limited, however.

6. Smoking is the single most important risk factor for PAD because many components of tobacco directly damage the artery.

7. People with PAD often have elevated cholesterol levels and high blood pressure, which can be brought under control through diet and medications.

8. There are several medications that can help you achieve your PAD treatment goals. The risk of heart attack and stroke can be reduced with aspirin and medications that reduce blood pressure and cholesterol levels and improve diabetic control. Other medications can improve the symptoms of claudication by helping blood reach the leg muscles despite arterial blockages.

9. If exercise and medications aren't effective in improving claudication, the symptoms can sometimes be treated with nonsurgical procedures that involve only a small nick in the skin and the use of small balloon-tipped catheters (tubes) under x-ray guidance to open arteries. Specialized physicians perform these procedures, which usually require only an overnight stay in the hospital and little recuperation time.

10. Surgery, in which closed arteries are bypassed, is rarely required but may be an option if there is a risk of amputation, or if all other exercise, medication and angioplasty options are ineffective or are not feasible.