 Early Times Report
Jammu, July 18: Ignoring blackened toes may not only lead to amputation of foot or leg, but can also cause onset of heart ailment, it was informed by vascular surgeon Dr Ravul Jindal, Director of Vascular and Endovascular Surgery at Fortis Hospital, Mohali, Punjab, addressing media persons here today.
Dr Jindal added that the Peripheral Arterial Disease (PAD) is associated with old age, smoking, diabetes, high cholesterol and hypertension. "Those from rural areas have to walk a lot and hence develop symptoms of the disease in the form of pain in calf or thigh while walking. Unfortunately, these diseases are not diagnosed in time and patients ultimately land up with gangrene and consequent limb amputation," Dr Jindal added.
The incidence of diseases varies from 4-6% in the population aged more than 50 years. Risk factors result in blockade of blood vessels in leg, causing loss of blood supply to foot with consequences such as infection, non-healing ulcer and gangrene (blackening of toes). Dr Jindal, who has received advanced training in vascular surgical procedures from St Mary's Hospital, London, added people suffering from PAD run two to six times greater risk of dying from heart attack or stroke as compared to others.
"If not treated in time, patients might have to undergo amputation either of foot or leg. This carries huge morbidity and mortality as these patients also have associated heart disease," he said. Smokers having diabetes are more prone to gangrene than only smokers or diabetics.
The absence of early diagnosis worsens the problem. "Though there is no data for vascular patients in our country, the fact that there are over 25 million diabetics is just a small pointer to the vast number of undiagnosed vascular cases. Studies show that patients of severe vascular disease have been treated for low backache and arthritis for years," he revealed. It's the onset of peripheral gangrene that reveals absence of pulsations for long periods of time hitherto unnoticed. After diagnosis, the only treatment is amputation, leaving primary vascular problem unsolved. |
