Key measures include:
- Cessation of smoking
- Eating a healthy diet
- Exercising regularly, a minimum of 30 minutes a day, all days of the week.
You may actively contribute to the treatment of peripheral arterial disease (PAOD) by adopting a healthy lifestyle.
Key measures include:
and may thus be useful in patients with PAOD. This requires you to walk at a brisk pace until the pain starts. You may then take a break until the pain subsides and then continue walking. This may be done under the guidance of occupational therapists or as part of a walking sports group. Exercising for about an hour a day improves the blood circulation in the legs since a network of smaller blood vessels (collateral circulation) develops over time which may compensate for occlusion of one of the main vessels. This helps restore the blood supply to the affected region. Exercise also helps reduce blood pressure and blood lipids.
Ensure you take good care of your feet if you suffer from diabetes mellitus as well as PAOD, since diabetes also affects nerves and you may not experience pain arising from wounds. Specially trained podiatrists can take care of your feet professionally. Even minor wounds may be problematic when wound healing is impaired. They may become infected following invasion by bacteria and other germs. Wounds may then become chronic and may no longer heal. Tissue death may occasionally occur due to reduced blood supply, and dead or necrotic tissue must then be carefully removed. Non-diabetic patients with PAOD can perceive pressure points and sores on their feet normally.
We also treat pre-existent underlying diseases with medication. Thus, effective drugs are available against:
It is important that you take these drugs regularly. A healthy diet and adequate exercise are likewise important.
Drugs which prevent blood clots (thrombi) in blood vessels, e.g., antiplatelet drugs such as the active ingredients acetylsalicylic acid and clopidogrel, are also effective.
Various options are available for restoring patency of narrowed or occluded vessels. The right choice depends on the exact site and nature of your disease, as well as your age and symptoms, and the optimal therapeutic strategy is therefore always individualized.
Register directly with the Clinic for Vascular Surgery for your first appointment.
Opening hours: 8 a.m. – 12 p.m. 1.00 p.m. – 5.00 p.m.
Simply assign your patient online.
University Hospital Zurich
Clinic for Vascular Surgery
Rämistrasse 100
8091 Zurich