Leg Pain: Symptoms, Complaints, Signs

The following symptoms and complaints may occur along with Leg pain:

Leading symptom

  • Leg pain

General accompanying symptoms

  • Peripheral edema (water retention).
  • Hyperthermia (calor)
  • Feeling of heavy legs (tired legs), especially after long periods of sitting and standing (note: no certain relationship to the severity of the disease).
  • Localized peripheral cyanosis (blue coloration of the skin)/paleness of the affected extremity.
  • Erythema (extensive reddening of the skin)
  • Atrophic skin changes (loss of skin elasticity).
  • Shiny skin
  • Cold sensation in the affected extremity
  • Cold skin
  • Varices (varicose veins)
  • Tendency to hematomas (bruises), spontaneous or from minor trauma.
  • Stasis eczema and ulcers (-ulcers) on the legs.
  • Fever
  • Tachycardia (heartbeat too fast: > 100 beats per minute).
  • Inflammation

Warning signs (red flags)

Thrombosis is accompanied by the following symptoms: in arterial thrombosis.

  • Pain
  • Partial ischemia – lack of blood flow.
  • Complete ischemia – sometimes complete absence of blood flow to an organ.
  • Localized peripheral cyanosis (bluish discoloration of the skin).

The following symptoms and complaints may indicate acute arterial occlusion (6 P according to Pratt):

  1. Pain (pain)
  2. Pallor (pallor)
  3. Pulselessness (Pulselessness)
  4. Paresthesia (sensory disturbance)
  5. Paralysis (inability to move)
  6. Prostration (shock)

Etiology (causes)

  • Embolism: 70-80% (cardiac embolism 90% + arterio-arterial embolism 10%).
  • Arterial thrombosis 30-20 %.

For venous thrombosis

  • Fever
  • Tachycardia (heart rate greater than 100 beats during normal physical exertion)
  • Inflammation
  • Overheating
  • Swelling (e.g., swelling of the calf)
  • Slight bluish discoloration
  • Pain in the area of the affected veins

Caution. The symptomatology of deep vein thrombosis (DVT) can be very nonspecific.

Localizations

  • All blood vessels possible
  • Leg veins more common than arm veins (the latter more common in men)

The following symptoms and complaints may indicate a pulmonary embolism:

The symptoms depend on the size of the thrombus! If there is a massive pulmonary embolism (ie, obstruction of more than 50% of the pulmonary circulation; in about 5-10% of all cases of pulmonary embolism), then the full picture of a pulmonary embolism described below.Leading Symptoms

  • Acute onset of chest pain* (chest pain), sometimes felt as annihilation pain.
  • Anxiety
  • Anxiety
  • Dyspnea* (shortness of breath) and tachypnea (increased or excessive respiratory rate).
  • Hemoptysis (coughing up blood)
  • Cough
  • Sweats
  • Syncope (brief loss of consciousness)
  • Tachycardia (pulse too fast at > 100 beats/min).
  • Central cyanosis (bluish discoloration of skin and central mucous membranes).
  • Hypotension (blood pressure below normal).
  • Shock

* Atemsynchronous pain with resting dyspnea (onset of dyspnea at rest).

Depending on the size of the blocked vessel, pulmonary embolism can be asymptomatic or lethal (fatal).