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Is it the arteries? A 5-question check of leg symptoms
One minute, five questions about your legs. The result is not a diagnosis but guidance: whether there are signs of arterial disease, which examination is needed and how urgently to seek care.
This check is not meant for sudden symptoms. If a leg has become cold, pale, numb or sharply painful within minutes or hours, or the toes have stopped moving, this may be an acute blockage of an artery. Do not spend time on the check: call an ambulance (103 in Ukraine).
Department phone: +380 44 454 20 79. The result is not a medical diagnosis and does not replace an examination.
How the check works
The check is built on the signs a vascular surgeon uses to assess blood supply to the legs at the first examination. Five questions:
- Do you get pain in the foot or toes at rest — especially at night, with the legs in bed?
- Is there a wound or ulcer on the foot that has not healed for more than two weeks, or a black toe?
- Do you get pain or burning in the calves when walking that goes away a few minutes after stopping?
- Is one foot noticeably colder than the other, is the skin pale, or has hair stopped growing on the lower leg?
- Which of these applies to you?
What the result means
- Emergency — possible acute limb ischemia.
- The foot has turned cold or pale suddenly, within hours or a day — today or in the last few days; sharp pain, numbness or impaired toe movement may be present. Irreversible tissue damage can develop within hours, so call an ambulance (103 in Ukraine); do not warm or rub the leg. Changes that have built up over weeks or months are not covered by this result — they call for a planned visit within days.
- Red — signs of limb-threatening ischemia.
- Foot pain at rest or at night, a wound that has not healed for more than two weeks, a black toe. A vascular surgeon's consultation within days; with swelling, discharge or fever — medical care the same day. Limb-threatening ischemia
- Amber — intermittent claudication or grounds for screening.
- Calf muscle pain when walking that resolves after stopping, or diabetes with skin changes of the foot. Work-up: ankle-brachial index and duplex ultrasound of the arteries; in diabetes — toe pressure and the toe-brachial index as well, because the ankle-brachial index can be falsely normal. Peripheral artery disease · Diabetic foot
- Green — no signs of arterial disease.
- With risk factors — control of blood pressure and cholesterol, smoking cessation; if symptoms appear — repeat the check or get in touch.
Frequently asked questions
Can this check make a diagnosis?
No. It only indicates whether your symptoms resemble arterial disease and how urgently you should seek care. A diagnosis is made after examination and imaging.
Which examinations confirm leg artery disease?
Ankle-brachial index and duplex ultrasound of the arteries, both done in one visit; CT angiography when indicated. In diabetes and chronic kidney disease the ankle-brachial index can be falsely normal or high because of calcium deposits in the walls of the lower-leg arteries, so toe pressure and the toe-brachial index are measured as well.
What if the result is red but I cannot come today?
Do not warm the leg, do not use ointments or home remedies, do not cut away blackened tissue. Call the department or message the doctor and we will discuss what to do before the visit. With signs of infection (swelling, discharge, fever) do not postpone: seek medical care the same day. This does not apply to sudden symptoms: if a leg has become cold, pale or numb within hours, do not call the department or message the doctor — call an ambulance (103 in Ukraine).