Poor circulation in the legs often whispers before it shouts. Recognizing the early signs — and acting on them — is how a minor problem stays minor. OKLAHOMA CARDIOVASCULAR CENTER · FOR PATIENTS Peripheral artery disease develops slowly, and its early signs are easy to explain away. Here are six worth paying attention to — especially if you have diabetes, smoke or used to, or have heart disease in the family. Signs worth checking Leg pain or cramping when you walk that ease

Cramping, aching, or fatigue in your calves, thighs, or hips that starts when you walk and eases when you rest has a name — claudication. It is one of the most common early signs of peripheral artery disease, and it is very treatable. OKLAHOMA CARDIOVASCULAR CENTER · FOR PATIENTS Many people assume leg pain is just a part of getting older, or a knee or back problem. When the pain is brought on by walking a predictable distance and relieved by a few minutes of rest, the caus

A diabetic foot wound that won’t close is rarely just a skin problem. More often it is a signal that blood flow to the foot has quietly fallen too low for healing — and that is something that can be checked and fixed. OKLAHOMA CARDIOVASCULAR CENTER · FOR PATIENTS Healing a wound takes blood — oxygen, nutrients, and infection-fighting cells all arrive through the arteries. In diabetes, nerve damage hides the pain that would normally warn you, and artery disease often runs de

Being told a leg cannot be saved is frightening — and it is not always the final word. Whether a limb is salvageable often depends on whether the small arteries below the knee and in the foot were examined and treated. OKLAHOMA CARDIOVASCULAR CENTER · FOR PATIENTS We meet many people who arrive after being told nothing more can be done. Often, the blockages that threaten the limb sit in the small arteries of the calf, ankle, and foot — the arteries we work to reopen. When t

The hardest foot wounds are the ones that keep coming back — perfused enough to look borderline, but never quite enough to heal. Increasingly, the evidence points to a single anatomic answer: the pedal arch. MATTHEW J. COMSTOCK, DO, FACC, FSCAI · FOR REFERRING CLINICIANS The pedal arch is the loop of arteries below the ankle that delivers the last few centimeters of flow to the wound bed. When the arch is out, wounds stall; when it is restored, the whole trajectory changes.