How to save your "rusty" blood vessels? - Understanding lower limb arteriosclerosis obliterans

Author: Guo Minghua Wang Lei Peking Union Medical College Hospital

Reviewer: Song Xiaojun, deputy chief physician, Peking Union Medical College Hospital

Mr. Li is 60 years old and is usually in good health. After retirement, he can walk with his wife and friends and occasionally climb mountains. However, since the beginning of winter last year, he found that his walking is not the same as before. Usually, he can walk 500 to 600 meters, but now he feels numbness in his calves after walking 200 to 300 meters, and sometimes he feels soreness and even pain. Mr. Li thought it was because of the cold weather, so he didn't pay attention to keeping warm. His family also said, "Catching a cold and cramps are not a big deal, just wear thicker clothes." As a result, Mr. Li kept warm throughout the winter, bought a lot of thick clothes, and even put on cotton trousers and woolen trousers that he didn't wear much when he was young, but the problem of cold and painful legs did not get better at all. After the beginning of spring, the weather gradually warmed up, and it was about to enter summer, but he still couldn't take off the thick clothes on his legs. He felt that it was not a problem that could be solved by keeping warm, so he hurried to the hospital for a check-up. The doctor told him that he had lower limb arteriosclerosis obliterans.

In our body, the endless flow of blood supports our life. Blood vessels are like water pipes, responsible for transporting blood to various organs of the body. Just like water pipes will rust, if blood vessels are atherosclerotic, they will be blocked, resulting in poor blood circulation. The human body will experience limb ischemia accordingly. If the lower limb arteries are blocked, the legs or feet will feel weak, cold, numb, painful, etc.

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If not treated promptly, the symptoms will continue to worsen, especially at night. This is what is often called "rest pain" in medicine. At this time, the pain has seriously affected sleep. If the condition is delayed for a little longer, the toes may become purple, the skin may become black, and necrosis may occur. At this time, the necrosis of the feet is already irreversible damage, and there is a high probability of amputation.

If you suffer from lower limb arteriosclerosis obliterans, you should seek medical attention and receive timely treatment as soon as possible. You should use drugs to clear blood vessels under the guidance of a doctor, or choose intravascular stent treatment, vascular bypass surgery, etc.

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In fact, there are good ways to prevent lower limb arteriosclerosis obliterans. Here are some tips for prevention at home.

1. Take good care of your feet at home to prevent diseases

(1) First look: Look at the color of the foot skin, whether it is rosy (normal), pale (indicating poor blood circulation), cyanotic, or black (indicating possible ischemia).

(2) Second touch: Touch the skin of your legs or feet to see if it is warm (good blood circulation) or cold (poor blood circulation).

(3) Three touches: Touch the foot artery and the posterior tibial artery to feel their pulsation. If the arterial pulsation can be felt, it means that the blood circulation is good; if the arterial pulsation cannot be felt, it indicates that the blood circulation is poor.

(4) Four cares: Take good care of your skin, keep your lower limbs warm, choose the right shoes and socks to avoid skin damage and injury. If the blood circulation in your lower limbs is poor, wound healing will be slow and infection will be easily induced. Paying attention to the following details can protect the health of your feet: ① Pay attention to foot cleanliness. Apply moisturizer after washing your feet in the correct way every day to keep your skin moisturized and prevent dryness and cracking. If your heels are severely dry and cracked, you can use a chapped cream. ② Carefully trim your toenails. In good light, use a nail clipper to trim your toenails flat. Do not trim too deep, especially for people with deformed and thickened toenails or diabetics. Avoid trimming in public bathrooms to prevent cross infection. ③ Observe skin changes frequently. Observe your foot skin every day to see if it is keratinized, thickened, has corns, or abnormal toenails. Observe whether the peripheral skin has redness, swelling, blisters, ulcers, or small cuts. If it is inconvenient for you to observe, you can ask others to help observe. ④ Ensure foot safety and try to avoid foot trauma and pressure on peripheral tissues. Try to walk on flat ground without obstacles, avoid walking in crowded crowds to avoid being stepped on; choose appropriate shoes and socks; do not scratch when the skin itches; do not use hot water bottles or warm therapy devices to avoid burns. In addition, pay attention to keeping your legs and feet warm.

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2. Exercise

Aerobic exercise (such as jogging, Tai Chi, swimming, etc.) can not only play a good role in reducing fat, but also promote blood circulation, strengthen lung function, and improve blood supply to the heart and brain. If you only feel abnormal in the early stage, or only have mild intermittent claudication, you can do "structured exercise training" appropriately if your cardiopulmonary conditions permit. This needs to be done under the supervision and guidance of professionals. During exercise, you can gradually increase the pain-free walking distance and the maximum walking distance, and you can also lower your blood lipid levels. The recommended exercise program is to walk for 30 to 45 minutes each time, at least 3 times a week, for at least 3 months. If you experience limb pain during walking, you can stop and rest for a while, and then resume exercise after the symptoms are relieved. If the disease is already very serious, with severe claudication or even symptoms of resting pain, you need to see a doctor in time, and the doctor will evaluate the disease before further treatment.

3. Eat a healthy diet

The diet should be reasonable, and pay attention to a low-salt, low-fat diet to improve blood vessel conditions.

4. Maintain good living habits

Develop good living habits and gradually eliminate bad living habits, especially quit smoking. Nicotine in cigarettes can cause vasospasm, increase blood viscosity, easily lead to blood circulation disorders and ischemic necrosis, and quitting smoking can improve vascular conditions accordingly.

It is not difficult to save "rusty" blood vessels, but to prevent them from "rusting", you need to work hard in every aspect of your life. Please take care of your blood vessels to keep your life full of vitality!