September is PAD Awareness Month. Peripheral Artery Disease (PAD) is a common disease that affects many people. According to the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, 8 to 12 million Americans over the age of 40 suffer from PAD. According to Stand Against Amputation, over 160,000 PAD-related amputations are performed in the U.S. every year. Awareness is crucial and you are especially at risk if you are over 50, overweight, smoke (even if you quit), are diabetic, have high blood pressure or high cholesterol, have non-healing wounds, or have a family history of PAD. 

Atherosclerosis is common in patients with PAD. Atherosclerosis is the blockage of arteries due to the build-up of plaque. Plaque—which consists of cholesterol, calcium, waste products, and fibrin—clogs arteries and restricts blood flow by hardening and narrowing the arterial pathway. The peripheral extremities are usually affected, particularly below the knee. It most commonly affects arteries located on the part of the leg that is subject to more stress because of cholesterol and plaque disease.

What does PAD feel like?

Some common PAD symptoms are leg pain while walking, which is known as claudication, cramping while walking, requiring you to stop and wait for the cramping to subside, a resting pain in the middle of the night that feels like the front of your feet are submerged in ice, a painful sensation caused by restricted blood flow, wounds on your legs or feet that are non-healing, pale, or causing blue skin discoloration and toenails that are yellowish, thick, and lacking growth.

If you suspect that you or your loved one has PAD, it is important to see a PAD specialist like Dr. David Nabi of NewportVascular.com. There are various ways to treat PAD, and it is important to get the treatment that is right for your situation.

How do you treat PAD?

There are several minimally invasive procedures available to treat PAD. Your doctor will plan the best course of action for your specific medical needs, aimed at achieving optimal recovery.

What happens if PAD goes untreated?

It is imperative to get treated for PAD, especially if there is a blockage in your blood flow. Restricted blood flow can result in amputations, heart attacks, and stroke. Severe PAD also puts some people at risk for critical limb ischemia, which is when the blood flow is almost completely obstructed, quickly becoming an emergency. Critical limb ischemia has the "six Ps": symptomology of pain, pallor, paresthesia, paralysis, pulselessness, and poikilothermia. 

• Pain: excruciating pain that increases with the severity of the blockage 

• Pallor: blue discoloration or mottled skin

• Paresthesia: numbness

• Paralysis: loss of movement 

• Pulselessness: absent or diminished pulse in lower extremities (feet and legs) 

• Poiklothermia: cold temperature in limbs

The severe form of PAD known as critical limb ischemia requires emergency intervention to avoid loss of limbs. 

How do I know if I have PAD?

If you haven’t been diagnosed with PAD, the best step you can take to prevent complications or worsening of PAD is to be screened for it—especially if you are in the at-risk category. A simple pulse check in your legs or feet with a doppler ultrasound can indicate whether you might have PAD.

If you are diabetic, you should especially screen for PAD. Be aware of PAD symptoms and include a vascular surgeon as part of your team. It is highly recommended to have a PAD vascular surgery specialist work alongside your podiatrist and primary care physician (PCP) to avoid the consequences of diabetes and PAD, namely non-healing ulcers and restricted blood flow

There are many interventions many that are minimally invasive that can help save your limbs from amputation and give you the happy and healthy golden years you deserve.

This September, in recognition of PAD Awareness Month, get yourself screened for PAD. It’s always better to be safe than sorry.