What Is Vascular Disease? A Plain-Language Guide For Patients

The conditions under vascular disease are among the leading causes of amputations, strokes, and organ injuries, yet very few patients discover they have it before things progress significantly. That is not solely their fault, either, because the beginning signs of the disease, like light fatigue or minor pain, are usually ignored. In addition to the above-mentioned issue, there is one more factor complicating the problem: the disease is complex, and doctors do not always have enough time to explain the technicalities of it to you in depth. That disconnect in comprehension can lead you to feel completely lost and even more removed from the help that you actually require.

Therefore, regardless of whether you have been diagnosed or are trying to comprehend what you feel at the moment, we are starting right from the beginning: the true definition and types of vascular disease.

Vascular Disease: Definition and Importance

To understand vascular disease, we first need to know how blood vessels function. The blood vessel system consists of three kinds of vessels:

• The arteries carry the oxygen-rich blood away from the heart to other body regions.
• The veins carry the oxygen-depleted blood back to the heart.
• The capillaries are the smallest of the three; their networks, called capillary beds, weave through tissues and reach inaccessible areas.

What Is Meant By Vascular Disease?

The term vascular disease refers to the abnormality of blood vessels and impaired blood flow in them. There can be several aspects of such diseases:

• Narrowing: The gradual accumulation of plaque on the walls of the vessels leaves less space for blood passage.
• Blocking: Either partial or complete blocking by a clot or an extreme amount of plaque.
• Weakening: Weakening of vessel walls leading to bulging.
• Impaired circulation: Blood moves through open vessels too slowly or weakly to deliver adequate oxygen and nutrients to tissues. 

Such a disease may appear in various regions of the body: the legs, abdomen, neck, or near the heart. Depending on the affected region, your symptoms will vary. But all cases have a common denominator: the lack of proper blood flow to the area.

Why Does Vascular Disease Deserve Attention?

The body is more dependent on steady blood flow than most people realize. When circulation drops, the effects are felt across the board:

• Cramps occur when muscles tire easily from a lack of oxygen.
• Vascular spasms occur, leading to numbness, tingling, or weakness in the body.
• Chronic under-supplied organs have difficulty functioning properly.

In fact, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), one person in the United States died every 33 seconds from cardiovascular disease between 2018 and 2021. Plus, what makes vascular disease particularly difficult to catch is that it develops silently, often over years, while the body continues to function well enough that nothing feels truly wrong yet.

Types of Vascular Disease, And What to Watch For!

Common Conditions that occur under Vascular Diseases

• Peripheral Artery Disease (PAD): The blockage of the leg artery occurs as a result of the buildup of plaque within it. The symptoms for this condition manifest themselves in the form of cramps or aches that occur during walking and ease up after resting. In fact, according to
• Deep Vein Thrombosis (DVT): It is a kind of a disease whereby a blood clot forms inside one’s leg veins. The symptoms include swelling, warmth, and leg pains.
• Varicose Veins: They are big veins whose walls are weakened to the extent that a patient can observe swelling and lumps on the skin surface, along with pain in that particular leg.
• Aneurysm: In this case, a patient will be suffering from a bubble formed in the wall of his/her artery. The symptoms are not evident until they are found during scanning.
• Carotid Artery Disease: This refers to the narrowing of neck arteries responsible for supplying oxygen to the brain. There are no apparent signs, but the risks of getting a stroke significantly increase.
• Chronic Venous Insufficiency (CVI): In this disease, patients experience difficulties pumping blood from the veins upwards to the heart, which makes patients’ legs swollen and heavy.

Symptoms Of Vascular Disease That Need Your Close Observation

• Cold feeling in legs and feet while the rest of your body remains warm.
• Injuries in the feet or legs are healing at an excessively slow rate.
• Pale or blue discoloration on the skin in some areas.

Risk Factors Which Make You Prone to Vascular Disease

There are some factors that you can deal with, while there are others that are beyond your control. Nevertheless, in whatever form it may be, you should know about the risks you face:

• One major risk factor is smoking because it causes damage to the lining of blood vessels. NIH-funded research confirms that tobacco smoke damages the endothelium, the inner lining of blood vessels, and this damage is recognized as the starting point for atherosclerosis 
• Poorly-controlled diabetes causes rapid destruction of blood vessels and delays the healing process of any cuts or bruises.
• Hypertension places constant pressure on arteries, causing them to become hard, constricted, and more prone to injury.
• Low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol accumulates within the lining of arteries for decades before exhibiting any symptoms.
• A lack of exercise affects blood flow negatively and adds to almost all other risk factors listed above.
• Ages above 50 causes decreased elasticity of blood vessels, but damage starts decades earlier.
• A history of aneurysms, strokes, or any other cardiovascular diseases in your family increases your risk immensely.

Conclusion

The earlier vascular diseases are caught, the better the outcomes, and in many cases, early intervention makes a significant difference in how well a treatment works. If any of what you have read here sounds familiar, we are here to help. At Vegas Vascular Specialists, we are Las Vegas’s largest and most trusted vascular surgery group, with over 20 years of experience helping patients get the answers and care they deserve. Our board-certified team is ready when you are!

Let’s replace your uncertainty with expert answers and a personalized plan you can feel confident in. Book a consultation today!

FAQs

When do people develop vascular diseases?

In general, people become aware of the existence of their condition when they turn 50 or even older, although the development process may begin much earlier, during their thirties or forties.

Is it possible to suffer from such conditions and remain healthy?

Of course, this is the main issue with this condition. For instance, aneurysms often progress for many years without causing any symptoms at all.

What should I expect from the first visit to a specialist?

A conversation is the major part of this visit, concerning both symptoms and the patient’s medical history. A brief ultrasound or blood pressure measurement is also included.

After my first visit, I learned that I had an artery clogged. Does it imply that surgery will be required?

No, in most cases, there are other treatments that do not involve surgical operations.

What determines when a problem with the vessels becomes an emergency?

A torn aneurysm or abrupt interruption of circulation to the limb is not something that happens slowly. This is one of the major factors why early diagnosis is so crucial.