What causes peripheral arterial disease, or PAD?
ALAN HIRSCH, MD: Peripheral arterial disease is caused by blockages to the arteries that supply the legs with blood. It is caused by the same risk factors that cause blockages in other arteries of the body, such as in the heart and brain. These risk factors include smoking, diabetes, high blood pressure and high blood cholesterol. Who is most at risk? PAD is more common in individuals as they age, and thus peripheral arterial disease is becoming more common in the United States, as our population ages. Anyone over the age of seventy is at risk, and individuals fifty years of age or older who either smoke or have a history of smoking or who have diabetes mellitus, are also at risk. What is the increased risk of heart attack or stroke for those with PAD? A patient that has PAD faces a six- to sevenfold increased risk of heart attack or stroke. This is as high a risk as faced by a patient who has already had a heart attack or stroke. Is the narrowing, or ‘hardening’ of the arteries treata
