Claudication is the occurrence of painful cramps in the muscles of the thigh or calf due to poor blood supply to the leg muscles. The cause of poor blood supply to the muscles is atherosclerosis or arteriosclerosis, in which the arteries become narrowed and the vessel wall becomes stiffer and thicker. This causes blood flow to deteriorate and tissues receive less oxygen-rich blood. People who suffer from this have to stop regularly and often look in shop windows, hence the name shop window legs.

Cause of the occurrence of claudication

As mentioned above, claudication occurs in people suffering from atherosclerosis. This is a lifestyle disease that can occur due to high cholesterol, high blood pressure, diabetes mellitus, obesity, little exercise and smoking. Age and predisposition also have an influence. The process is slow, so complaints only occur later. In addition to vomiting, complaints such as chest pain, a heart attack or a stroke can occur. People who suffer from claudication are more likely to die from a heart attack within five years. In addition, poor blood circulation in the legs and feet often causes problems, which can possibly lead to amputation of toes or even the lower leg.

Atherosclerosis

An insidious disease that many people in the Netherlands suffer from, and which can lead to claudication, is atherosclerosis. In this disease, fat accumulates in the inner lining of the arteries. The arteries narrow and become increasingly stiff. The result is reduced blood flow, causing tissues to receive less oxygen-rich blood. Arteries can rupture and blood clots that may form can completely block an artery. A stroke or myocardial infarction may occur. In the beginning you don’t notice the process. Only when the arteries are clogged by half or more will complaints occur. Chest pain, angina pectoris, often occurs with exertion. If the narrowing is very large, about 90%, chest pain will occur even at rest. It is best to live a healthy lifestyle so that atherosclerosis is prevented as much as possible. Unfortunately, the disease is hereditary in some people, but even then it is certainly important to maintain a healthy lifestyle. It is important to exercise a lot, not smoke, avoid being overweight and not consuming too much animal fat.Atherosclerosis can cause the blood supply in a leg to become too minimal, causing pain during exertion, intermittent claudication or also called claudication.

Symptoms of claudication

• Pain or cramp in the leg that occurs with exertion and decreases when standing still. The leg may also feel heavy and tired with exertion
• The foot of the affected leg will feel colder than the other foot
• Thickened toenails
• Slow toenail growth
• Hair growth on toes and legs decreases

Therapy

The treatment will aim to reduce the symptoms and prevent further arteriosclerosis by tackling the risk factors. There are things you can do yourself, such as;

• Running training. Walking a lot, even if it hurts, is good. The oxygen supply in the legs will improve. If you are unable to do this yourself, a physiotherapist can provide guidance.
• Quit smoking. Smoking is bad for the heart and blood vessels, so it is important to stop smoking as soon as possible. If you cannot do this yourself, there is all kinds of help available.
• Medicines to reduce arteriosclerosis, lower blood pressure or treat diabetes mellitus.
• Start taking blood thinning medications.
• In the case of severe narrowing of the leg artery, an angioplasty treatment can be performed, in which a balloon is advanced via a catheter to the site of the narrowing. This is inflated so that the elastic vessel wall is stretched. If necessary, this is repeated a few times until the narrowing has reduced.
• A bypass operation is also an option, in which a bypass is made along the narrowing with veins from the leg or with a plastic vascular prosthesis.