Controlling risk factors through lifestyle changes and medication to avoid endovascular therapy or surgery to reopen arteries to the legs or arms
Diet and Exercise
Patients with peripheral arterial disease must reduce the amount of cholesterol-containing (fatty) foods in their diet. Overweight patients must also reduce their daily calorie intake to lose weight.
Exercise helps patients lose weight and build a stronger circulatory system, improving blood flow. Although patients with peripheral arterial disease may experience pain during exercise, a program of daily walking for short periods may help maintain or regain function.
Patients with peripheral arterial disease may benefit from medications to reduce the risk of heart attack and stroke. Several types of drugs commonly are prescribed:
Antiplatelet Drugs
Antiplatelet drugs make blood platelets less likely to stick together. Sticky platelets, which are common in damaged blood vessels, may form a blood clot and lead to a stroke or heart attack. Aspirin is the most common, least expensive, antiplatelet drug and typically has the fewest potential side effects.
Anticoagulants
Anticoagulants prevent blood clots by affecting the proteins in the body's clotting system. They require careful monitoring. Heparin, which is used short term, and warfarin, which is used long term, are both anticoagulants.
Cholesterol-lowering Drugs
By decreasing the amount of cholesterol, especially low-density lipoprotein (LDL), these drugs decrease the primary material that makes up deposits that narrow or plug arteries and create atherosclerosis (hardening of the arteries). Examples of these drugs include niacin, statins, fibrates and bile acid sequestrants.
Calcium Channel Blockers
Calcium channel blockers help dilate arteries and control high blood pressure.
Vitamins
Folate, B-6 and B-12 are vitamins that help to decrease homocystine in the blood. Other dietary supplements, such as L-arginine and omega-3 fatty acids, may also be prescribed. |