Peripheral artery disease (PAD) is a disease most prevalent in individuals 50 years or older that narrows your arteries with fatty deposits. This process makes it more difficult for your heart to pump blood out to your extremities. PAD tends to attacks the lower extremities (such as your groin, knee, shin or calf) as they are furthest from your heart and it takes your heart the most effort to reach. Currently in the United States, PAD afflicts 8-10 million people, resulting in roughly 150,000 leg amputations each year.
If left undiagnosed and untreated, one in five people with PAD will suffer:
- numbness in the leg or groin area
- painful cramping in lower extremities
- frequent soreness in lower extremities
- pain when using your arms
- decrease in temperature of legs and other lower extremities
- gangrene
- a leg amputation
- a heart attack or stroke within 5 years
PAD is easily detected using rapid-screen systems such as Microlife’s Office ABI Newman Medical’s ABI-Q , ABI Kit and both the simpleABI system and simpleABI Cuff-link system. These systems are easy to use and do not require any special training. For more information on PAD and Newman Medical’s devices, view their PAD systems brochure here.
