Assoc. Prof. Dr. İlker Kiriş
Cardiovascular Surgery
What is the Peripheral Artery Disease?
"Peripheral artery disease," known as arterial occlusion, refers to the stenosis and blockages seen particularly in the leg arteries. When we are born, the inner artery walls are smooth. Fat, cholesterol residues, white blood cells (leukocytes), and calcium may accumulate in the inner artery walls over the years due to various risk factors.
This process is called "atherosclerosis" or colloquially called "arteriosclerosis." Although atherosclerosis commonly affects the arteries in the body, it most often causes stenosis and obstruction in the coronary vessels of the heart, carotid arteries, and leg arteries.
These harmful substances that accumulate in the leg arteries over time cause the formation of atherosclerotic plaques. As a result of the calcium accumulation on these plaques, arteries lose their flexibility, and the vessel wall becomes stiff due to calcification. Plaque gradually thickens and causes artery stenosis. This process usually does not cause any considerable complaint when it leads to mild stenosis but may even result in developing gangrene in the foot due to complete artery occlusion in the future stages. In patients with severe stenosis due to atherosclerosis in the leg arteries, the possibility of stenosis in the coronary vessels in the heart is significantly increased.
The disease shows no symptoms initially, but it occurs along with diverse pain in the upcoming periods. The doctor's experience and knowledge are critical in the diagnosis and treatment of the disease. Assoc. Prof. Dr. İlker Kiriş will be assisting you in combating this disease with his experiences in the field.
Who Have the Peripheral Artery Disease?
Peripheral artery disease is generally more common in people with a family history of this disease. Besides, peripheral artery disease is likely to be seen frequently due to "arterial occlusion" for some reasons.
These reasons are as follows;
- Advanced age,
- Male gender,
- Smoking,
- Diabetes,
- Hypertension,
- High levels of cholesterol and blood fats,
- An inactive lifestyle,
- Irregular eating habits,
- Obesity.
Why is the Leg Artery Occlusion Important?
Stenosis and occlusions develop over the years due to the leg artery atherosclerosis, known as ‘vessel stiffness’, and prevent the delivery of oxygen-rich clean blood to the toes. While it does not cause significant complaints in the early stages, leg pain develops as the degree of stenosis increases. Leg pain occurs particularly when walking. As the stenosis progresses, the walking distance of the patient gradually decreases. Rest pain and eventually foot wounds and gangrene may develop. This picture in these last stages is called "critical leg ischemia." Unfortunately, a five-year survival rate of patients with critical leg ischemia is similar to that of cancer patients.
What can be done?
As part of peripheral artery disease, the first thing is to consult a doctor as soon as the symptoms appear. When the doctor diagnoses the disease, he/she initiates the treatment procedures depending on the severity of the disease. Besides, the patient should follow some rules after the disease is diagnosed.
These rules are as follows;
- If the patient smokes, he/she must quit,
- If he is consuming excessive alcohol, he/she must minimize or quit alcohol,
- His/her eating habits must involve some permanent changes,
- If the patient is overweight, he/she have his/her ideal weight,
- The patient must do sports regularly.
As a result of the treatment to be applied by boosting the patient's consciousness, it might be possible to fight the disease. Moreover, the doctor to be selected to treat the disease must have experience in the field.
How Is It Diagnosed?
It is critical to correctly diagnose artery occlusions because the disease might be mistaken for others such as the herniated disc, venous insufficiency, and tumor. Therefore, the doctor who will make the diagnosis will need to be selected carefully. The critical issue for diagnosis is to start by listening to the patient's disease history. A Cardiovascular Surgeon should examine the patient. Arterial pulses, especially in the legs, are checked. In the outpatient setting, the ankle-arm arterial blood pressure ratio is measured. Besides, leg artery ultrasonography examination is performed. Finally, a definitive diagnosis is made by performing leg artery angiography.
Treatment of the Disease
The rapid development of technology has also improved the treatment of arterial occlusions. However, the methods developed by technology do not provide definitive solutions to the disease. First of all, the patient must consult a Cardiovascular Surgeon without delay when the complaints begin to ensure that the patient can be conscious and diagnosed early. After the diagnosis, he/she should follow the lifestyle change recommendations and use his/her medications regularly. During the treatment phase, the doctor's recommendations require to be followed.
Leg artery occlusion is a severe disease that requires the correct evaluation of the patient and appropriate treatment. Some patients may even have concomitant carotid artery disease and/or heart coronary artery disease. Therefore, the patient certainly needs to be careful when choosing a doctor. Assoc. Dr. İlker Kiriş helps you with his experience in this field. For more information, you can contact our doctor in the Izmir region.
