Leg pain : What to do?

Other reasons of leg pain
Sometimes in old age ,legs develop ”muscle cramps”especially during night time and sometimes severe pain. Sometimes due to osteoarthritis or inflammation of covering membranes of knee joint such as synovitis cause leg pain during walking. Sometimes leg pain is caused by sciatica.
Where to go in leg pain ?
If you have a complaint of leg pain, consult a vascular surgeon and get examined and investigated for leg arteries and veins. Specialized investigations like Doppler study, MR venogram, CT peripheral angiography are required for detailed evaluation.therefore go to a hospital where the facility for such investigations are available and a full-time vascular surgeon is available because on the basis of clinical assessment and the result of such specialized investigation, further treatment plan is decided. It is advisable to consult promptly a vascular surgeon as soon as pain in leg starts, otherwise condition may become worse later on.
If diseased arteries and decreased blood flow are responsible for leg pain, a variety of treatment modalities are applied like reconstruction of artery, arterial bypass and angioplasty and stenting.If the disease of vein is responsible for leg pain,venous valve reconstruction ,laser or radio frequency ablation treatment or venous bypass surgery are done.In most of the diseases of veins, other nonsurgical treatment like graduated compression stockings,pneumatic compression  devices and some special leg excercises are very helpful. When these measures fail, surgery becomes the natural choice.In case of arthritis of joint,some special excercises,physiotherapy and some special excercises, physiotherapy and some medication and life style modification definitely helps.
The writer is Senior Vascular & CardioThoracic Surgeon, Indraprastha Apollo Hospitals, Sarita Vihar, New Delhi and can reached at 9911114081, 9810114081 or [email protected]