Leg swelling: symptoms, diagnosis, and treatment
Written in association with:Top Doctors recently spoke to leading consultant vascular surgeon, Mr Maziar Mireskandari, who, in this article below, discusses leg swelling at length.
What is leg swelling?
Leg swelling is when one notices that their legs swollen or puffy. Leg swelling can occur in any region of the legs, including the thighs, calves, ankles, or feet.
What are the causes of leg swelling?
Your legs commonly swell for two main reasons:
- fluid build-up
- inflammation
- congestive heart failure
- fatigue or tiredness
- difficulty breathing, or shortness of breath
- chronic cough
- deep vein thrombosis (DVT)
- thrombophlebitis
- varicose veins/venous Insufficiency
- lymphoedema
- kidney problems
- medications
- pregnancy
- liver disease
What are the main associated symptoms?
Symptoms that can be associated with leg swelling include:
- leg pain
- redness
- numbness
- rash
- itching
- skin ulceration
- discolouration
- shortness of breath
How is leg swelling diagnosed?
Physicians will typically use several methods in order to acurately diagnose vascular conditions that cause leg swelling. These include:
- complete review of medications, symptoms, and medical history
- venography
- angiography
- magnetic resonance angiography
- ankle-brachial index
- doppler ultrasound flow studies
- exercise tests
- segmental blood pressure measurements
- venous doppler studies to evaluate for venous insufficiency
How is leg swelling treated?
It is advisable to try cutting back on salty foods and to see if wearing compression stockings helps in any way. Getting regular exercise and raising your legs above your heart level for 30 minutes, several times a day, is also highly recommended.
If you wish to book an appointment with Mr Maziar Mireskandari today, all you have to do is visit his Top Doctors profile.
