September is PAD (Peripheral Artery Disease) Awareness Month and to help patients uncover their risk for the disease, Porter Health Care System offers a free national screening program called Legs for Life at Porter Regional Hospital in Valparaiso. The quick and painless screening measures the circulation in both legs to detect the disease.
“Many people who have PAD don’t exhibit any symptoms. If you do experience symptoms, they may include pain, cramping and fatigue in the legs while walking, or skin discoloration and pain in the feet,” explained Interventional Cardiologist Sandeep Sehgal, M.D. “As the population ages, so does the prevalence of PAD. That’s why it is so important that Porter is able to offer a number of treatment modalities to better manage the disease which can not only affect the lower extremities but also increase a person’s risk for heart attack, stroke, transient ischemic attack (mini-stroke), or kidney problems.”
According to the American Heart Association, PAD affects nearly 12 million in the U.S. annually and is most common in people over the age of 50, those who smoke, have high blood pressure, high cholesterol or diabetes. The disease causes blood vessels outside of the heart to narrow when plaque builds up on the walls of arteries that supply blood to the arms and legs. PAD can increase the risk of heart attack or stroke.
To schedule your free Legs for Life screening, call 219-983-LEGS (5347).
Porter Health Care System has two hospital campuses and seven outpatient facilities serving Porter, Lake, LaPorte, Starke, Newton, Marshall and Jasper counties. With more than 350 physicians representing 50 medical specialties on the medical staff, Porter Health Care System is committed to medical excellence and personalized, patient-centered care.