Dealing with leg pain can be difficult because it greatly affects your mobility. Some people experience temporary leg pain as a result of a strained muscle or an intense workout session, while others deal with chronic pain due to underlying conditions.
Leg pain can occur due to a variety of reasons including cramps, injury or plaque buildup in your arteries.
Some of the most common causes of leg pain include:
- Dehydration or low amounts of potassium, calcium, sodium or magnesium in the blood
- Too much exercise, strain from muscle fatigue
- Use of medicines such as diuretics
- Injury to leg
- Strained or overstretched muscle
- Stress fracture or hairline crack in the bone
- Tendinitis or inflamed tendon muscle of the leg
Health Conditions That May Cause Leg Pain
Peripheral Artery Disease (PAD)
It is characterized by a clot in the leg artery. The clot develops due to plaque buildup on artery walls which mainly consists of cholesterol and cellular waste.
Varicose veins
These knotted and enlarged veins are formed when the veins in your legs are overfilled with blood due to malfunctioning valves. These swollen and raised veins are most often visible in the calves and ankles.
Deep Vein Thrombosis (DVT)
A blood clot is formed in the vein located deep inside your body. DVT is typically formed in the lower leg after long periods of bed rest.
Arthritis
It’s the inflammation of the joints. There are many types of arthritis, the two common ones being rheumatoid arthritis and osteoarthritis. Arthritis is more common in women than men, and overweight people. Rheumatoid arthritis affects the lining of joints while osteoarthritis damages the protective cartilage that cushions the ends of the bones.
Atherosclerosis
The narrowing of arteries due to the buildup of fat and cholesterol. Atherosclerosis can cause leg pain, particularly in the calves.
Gout
Too much uric acid built up in the body causes swelling and redness in the lower leg.
Nerve damage
Nerve damage can occur due to diabetes, smoking and alcoholism and can cause numbness, pain and tingling in the legs.
Cancerous bone tumors
Bone tumors usually occur in the people younger than 30. They can develop in any bone in the body, but mostly affects the bones in the legs and arms.
Poor blood flow to the hip
Also known as avascular necrosis, this condition occurs when there is an interruption to the flow of blood to the ball and socket hip joint. This causes the bone to become weakened and more susceptible to breakage.
Other Causes of Leg Pain
- Slipped disk in the back
- Blood clot due to long-term bed rest, known as deep vein thrombosis
- Inflammation of the leg joints due to arthritis or gout
- Infection of the bone or soft tissue of the leg
- Cancerous bone tumors in the larger leg bones
If you want to know how to stop leg pain, it’s important to also be aware of Peripheral Artery Disease (PAD). PAD could be a sign of a widespread accumulation of fatty deposits in your arteries, known as atherosclerosis.
Besides reducing blood flow to the leg, atherosclerosis could also interfere with the blood flow to your heart and brain, and may cause heart attack and stroke. If ignored, the disease can cause PAD complications, such as gangrene.
PAD symptoms include numbness in the leg, hair loss on feet, cramping pain in legs, sores on the feet, weak pulse in legs, and erectile dysfunction in men.
Treatment for Peripheral Artery Disease (PAD)
Treatment options for PAD include surgical and non-surgical procedures. Smoking cessation, eating a healthy diet, and exercising regularly can help control the symptoms of PAD. Some doctors recommend surgery, but a non-surgical PAD treatment option is always available to you as surgery can increase risk for injury and infection.
At USA Vascular Centers, we offer you a non-surgical option on how to stop leg pain with the help of balloon angioplasty. Unlike PAD surgery, you will be allowed to leave after your non-surgical PAD treatment. Our treatment has a fast recovery rate and you will be able to resume your daily activities within a week.
Contact Us for Leg Pain Relief
Aside from a regular appointment at our clinic, we also offer the option to conduct your initial consultation virtually. If you are concerned about visiting one of our clinics, give us a call to set up a virtual doctor appointment with one of our vascular specialists.
Just call us at 888-773-2193 or book your consultation online.
