From this article you will learn: why swelling of the legs occurs in heart failure, their treatment, symptoms and characteristic signs.
Edema is an increase in the volume of soft tissues due to the accumulation of intercellular fluid in them. Leg swelling is one of the main signs of heart failure, which is observed in many patients with this syndrome, caused by various heart diseases.
Edema is just a symptom of heart failure. Treatment should be aimed at eliminating the cause of their appearance, that is, at the diseases that caused the development of heart failure (abbreviated as HF). However, in the most severe cases, diuretic therapy is carried out, aimed at reducing the amount of excess fluid in the body. In the early stages of heart failure, swelling in the legs is eliminated quite well (they can be completely eliminated), and in the later stages they often become an integral part of the patient’s life.
In itself, swelling in the legs as a manifestation of heart failure does not pose an immediate danger to the patient’s life. However, they indicate the severity of the disease that led to their appearance. And this disease can already pose a threat to humans.
Cardiologists deal with the problem of swelling in the legs resulting from heart disease.
Two mechanisms play an important role in the development of edema in the legs during heart failure:
Blood enters the right half of the heart through the veins of the systemic circulation, coming from all human organs. When the right ventricle is unable to pump blood through the lungs, it accumulates in the venous bed, causing hydrostatic pressure to increase. Due to gravity, this increase is most noticeable in the legs, so swelling first appears there.
HF leads to the activation of a neurohumoral response, the action of which is aimed at retaining fluid and sodium in the body. Hormones that enter the system of this neurohumoral response are renin, angiotensin, aldosterone, vasopressin. They reduce the excretion of water and sodium by the kidneys, causing their amount in the body to increase.
Stagnation of blood in the venous system and an increase in the volume of fluid in the body, which occurs in most patients with heart failure, lead to its release from the vascular bed into the intercellular space and the appearance of edema. Since the most significant pressure gradient is observed in the lowest part of the body, edema develops first in the legs.
Signs of heart failure
The main symptom of edema in the legs of any origin is an increase in their volume due to the accumulation of excess fluid in the intercellular space. However, edema can occur not only due to heart failure; diseases of the kidneys, blood and lymphatic vessels can lead to their appearance.
There are several signs, the presence of which allows doctors to determine with a fairly high degree of probability the origin of swelling in the legs.
Characteristic symptoms of swelling in the legs of various origins:
They usually appear or increase in the evening, disappearing or decreasing in the morning
The skin may have a bluish tint
When pressing with a finger, a dent remains in the soft tissues, which is slowly restored
Often accompanied by shortness of breath, especially during physical activity
Accompanied by swelling around the eyes
Soft when pressed
Skin may appear pale
Usually one limb is affected
The skin over the site of thrombosis is red and hot to the touch
Soreness and increased sensitivity in the affected area
Sometimes occur due to predisposing factors (recent operations, injuries, cancer)
Hard when pressed
Brown skin on legs
Feeling of discomfort in the limbs
Sometimes trophic ulcers develop
Varicose veins are often observed
Treatment of edema of any origin should be aimed at eliminating the cause of its occurrence. For cardiac edema, you should try to improve the functioning of the heart, in which case the edema will naturally decrease or disappear.
In the initial stages of the pathology, swelling in the legs can be completely eliminated.
To relieve heart failure symptoms, including swelling in the legs due to heart failure, and improve heart function, doctors recommend:
These lifestyle changes help improve cardiovascular health, which can improve heart failure symptoms.
The following groups of drugs are used for drug treatment of heart failure:
If the appearance of edema in the legs during heart failure is caused by the presence of congenital or acquired heart defects, they are surgically corrected.
Ramipril is a drug from the group of ACE inhibitors
It should be remembered that the best method to treat cardiac edema is to improve the functioning of the heart. However, not all patients achieve this. In such cases, it is possible to improve the patient’s quality of life, reduce swelling and shortness of breath with the help of diuretics, which remove excess fluid from the body. However, in such severe cases, it is necessary to carefully monitor the condition of the kidneys, since intensive use of diuretics in some patients with heart failure can worsen their functioning and lead to a worsening of the patient's condition.
In addition to the use of diuretics, excess fluid can be removed from the body using ultrafiltration. During this procedure, the patient's blood is passed through a special machine that removes excess fluid from it and then returns it to the body. This method is used when diuretics become ineffective, its use is limited by the lack of necessary equipment in most medical institutions.
The prognosis for treatment of cardiac edema of the legs, which appeared as a result of heart failure, depends on what disease they are caused by. Even eliminating excess fluid in the body has virtually no effect on the final prognosis of the disease, although it can improve the quality of life in many patients.
Often people do not pay attention to the swelling of the legs that occurs at the end of the day. But this unpleasant symptom does not go away on its own, but progresses, becoming a herald of emerging heart failure.
Edema occurs due to a large accumulation of fluid in the body. They are often a concomitant sign of heart disease. Swelling of the legs is the result of improper functioning of the right ventricle of the heart muscle. As the disease progresses, they spread to other parts of the body and organs. The legs swell at the same time.
Treatment of leg swelling due to heart failure begins as early as possible. Over time, they cause more and more discomfort. If at the beginning the swelling in heart failure decreases after rest or a night's sleep, then in the advanced stage this does not happen. Swelling rises higher - to the knees, hips. Other symptoms that heart failure entails make themselves felt: increased fatigue, decreased performance, shortness of breath.
Heart disease often progresses to a severe or chronic stage. This occurs due to the slow progression of the disease. In the early stages, people may simply not take the appearance of swelling seriously, associating it with tired legs. Therefore, it is important to consult a specialist when such signs appear in order to begin treatment on time.
How does leg swelling occur in heart failure? If there is a problem with the heart, the pressure in the veins increases. This helps to increase pressure in the capillaries, which leads to the removal of fluid from them into the tissue. There is a decrease in the amount of blood pumped by the heart. This increases the production of enzymes.
The kidneys retain excessive amounts of sodium ions, which then pass into the blood and intercellular fluid. This leads to pathological processes in the body, as a result of which water is not excreted by the kidneys in sufficient volumes, but accumulates in the body.
Due to pressure in the veins and capillaries, excess fluid returns to the body tissues. If there is insufficiency, the heart cannot work fully, its functions weaken. When a person spends the whole day on his feet, the capacity of the heart is exhausted. This is how swelling of the lower extremities appears at the end of the day.
Often people do not realize that the cause of leg swelling is a problem with the heart. Therefore, they do not take any action for a long time, and the disease, meanwhile, progresses. Swelling in the legs due to heart failure has characteristic symptoms that differ from similar manifestations of kidney or liver diseases:
If swelling of the legs appears, similar to a symptom of heart failure, you should immediately go to the doctor and start treatment. Timely help will save you from dire consequences such as heart attack or stroke.
When treating swollen legs with medications for heart failure, diuretics are usually prescribed. They remove excess fluid from body tissues, thereby relieving symptoms.
Furosemide is the most popular drug from this group. It reduces preload in a short time, dilating the veins, as well as the pressure in the left ventricle of the heart and in the pulmonary artery. By removing sodium chloride, it has an antihypertensive effect. The diuretic effect of the drug occurs within an hour after taking it, and it lasts up to 6 hours. Furosemide is used both as monotherapy and in combination treatment, together with blood pressure lowering agents. Contraindicated in pregnant women and during breastfeeding. If a person tries to lose weight with the help of this diuretic, he will encounter the opposite effect, swelling will only increase its area. It will not be easy to remove them - the same drug will come to the rescue, but with a double dosage, which will have an extremely undesirable effect on the body.
Glycosides (carbohydrate preparations) - help remove swelling, blood stagnation in the legs, restore blood circulation. They consist of plant or synthetic components that have a beneficial effect on the functioning of the heart and blood vessels.
Most often, doctors prescribe Digoxin to patients, which is part of the group of cardiac glycosides. This remedy is considered the safest of this series, since, in the vast majority of cases, it did not cause side effects. Digoxin also provides long-lasting action. It is created on the basis of the leaves of the medicinal woolly foxglove.
"Strophatin" is another drug from the glycoside group. It is administered intravenously. The product acts quickly (after 15 minutes) and does not accumulate in the body.
Digitoxin is prescribed quite rarely. This is due to its ability to accumulate in the body and create a threat of intoxication.
The drugs have contraindications, so they should be taken only as prescribed by a specialist.
You can make your own medicine for edema from medicinal herbs or vegetables. Many of them have diuretic properties. Here are some natural recipes to treat swollen feet:
It is best to remove swelling with complex therapy, which includes medical procedures.
It is useful to relieve swelling of the legs in case of heart failure using sea salt baths. Every day after work you need to massage your limbs, pay special attention to your feet, and take a contrast shower. Apply cold compresses with herbal decoctions. Experts advise the following: lying on your back, raise your legs above the level of your heart to facilitate their blood supply. Do this procedure as often as possible, especially when you feel tired.
Therapeutic procedures are effective when the legs swell due to mild heart failure. The advanced stage of the disease requires constant monitoring and significant correction of the diet.
This is an important part of complex therapy, since it is impossible to relieve swelling without following a diet. What to do to effectively combat edema? Here are some rules:
To make it clearer how to treat swelling in heart failure by adjusting the diet, let’s combine an approximate list of healthy and harmful foods into one table.
During work, do you have to stand or sit motionless for a long time, and in the evening your legs hurt and become heavy? These may be symptoms of thrombophlebitis. To avoid becoming a victim of this disease, listen to the surgeons.
Thrombophlebitis is a vascular disease, which is characterized by inflammation of the vein wall and the formation of blood clots that block their lumen. With thrombophlebitis, blood pressure in the veins of the legs increases. Most often, as a result of prolonged standing (sedentary) work or work associated with carrying heavy loads, as well as during pregnancy.
There are two main forms of thrombophlebitis:
With superficial thrombophlebitis, the saphenous veins of the leg and thigh are most often affected. Much less common are the superficial veins of the mammary glands and the dorsal vein of the penis. Visually, superficial thrombophlebitis of the veins looks like a spider web. Usually the appearance of such a web is not harmful to health, and the web itself may disappear after a few days.
Symptoms of superficial thrombophlebitis:
Deep vein thrombophlebitis is a more serious problem. The danger of the disease is determined by the location of the thrombus. If a blood clot has formed in the veins of the legs, which are much wider than other veins, then the blood clots are correspondingly larger. When a detached blood clot reaches a person’s lungs or heart, a blockage of blood vessels occurs (embolism), and then only a resuscitator can save the person. And, unfortunately, the struggle for life in this case has a very disappointing prognosis.
Symptoms of deep vein thrombophlebitis:
Causes of thrombophlebitis
The main factors contributing to the formation of a blood clot are: blood thickening and slowing of blood flow, damage to the vascular wall. Typically, blood clots form in the veins when a person is immobile.
Factors contributing to the development of thrombophlebitis:
Thrombophlebitis can be diagnosed through MRI, ultrasound, or venography. Superficial thrombophlebitis, as a rule, is treated only for aesthetics. Although this disease is considered harmless, it is better to consult a doctor to prevent it from developing into a more serious problem.
“First of all, all patients must follow some rules: eliminate all possible factors leading to vasospasm, avoid cooling, wear warm gloves and shoes, stop smoking, drinking strong tea and coffee; exclude drugs that cause vasospastic reactions - beta-blockers, ergotamine drugs, estrogen-progesterone drugs, etc.,” says resident surgeon D.V. Reizin.
Treatments for deep vein thrombosis include anticoagulants (blood thinners), thrombolytics (drugs that break up blood clots), antispasmodics (troxevasin), anti-inflammatory drugs, angioprotectors, painkillers, and antibiotics. In more severe cases, surgical removal of the clot may be performed. “The extent of surgical intervention depends on the extent of the lesion. A vascular surgeon will be able to determine the possibility of minimally invasive intervention,” says the surgeon, consultant of the LIKAR . INFO , I.M.Molnar
There are many methods for preventing thrombophlebitis. To reduce the likelihood of developing it, you should avoid sitting for long periods of time, refrain from smoking, exercise regularly to increase blood circulation, and avoid wearing tight clothing. If you have a long car ride or long flight, take time to stretch your legs and drink plenty of fluids.
Also, to prevent the disease, it is recommended to perform a set of simple exercises, only 1 time a day, 5-10 times each.
Edema in heart failure is a sign of the decompensatory stage. This indicates that the heart muscle cannot cope with pumping blood from the lower sections to the center. Vessels, under the influence of increased venous pressure, allow the liquid part of the blood to pass into the intercellular space.
When prescribing medications, the doctor must consider their effect on additional mechanisms of edema formation.
General oxygen deficiency (hypoxia) plays a significant role in the occurrence of leg swelling. For this reason, the reliable structure of the vein wall is disrupted. They become permeable to plasma.
In addition, renal ischemia leads to decreased renal filtration and retention of sodium and water in the body.
The adrenal glands aggravate the situation and intensively produce aldosterone, an important hormone of water-salt metabolism. In patients with severe edema, the level of aldosterone in the urine is 20 times higher than normal.
Swelling in the legs should be treated only taking into account the main cause. They can occur when:
Characteristic signs of edema of cardiac origin are:
Normal finger pressure on the area of edema causes a persistent indentation.
Edema in heart failure is combined with other symptoms (tachycardia, shortness of breath, weakness) and indicates a stage of at least II a. They are preceded by clinical manifestations of various heart diseases. It could be:
Heart failure occurs with anemia, obesity, and cirrhotic liver damage.
If a person with heart disease increases in volume in the feet and legs in the evening, you can try to relieve the swelling before visiting a doctor. To do this, the patient should:
For swelling of the legs, the treatment should use the restrictive diet of table No. 10. The following are excluded from the diet:
Cooking must be done without salt; only add salt to the finished dish on the plate. Boiled and steamed meat and vegetable products are shown.
It is recommended to bake potatoes in the oven and eat them together with herbs; with this method, it is possible to preserve potassium in the product as much as possible
Nutritionists recommend adding foods that help increase urination:
To maintain the balance of potassium and magnesium electrolytes with increased fluid removal in the diet, the following is necessary:
Traditional methods of eliminating leg swelling help at an early stage. Recommended baths with decoctions:
For baths, it is better to use a tall bucket so that both feet and legs are immersed in the water. The water temperature should be slightly higher than the body, the duration of the procedure is 20 minutes.
Compresses with grated raw potatoes help effectively:
The compress is best done after baths, at night.
For internal use, decoctions and infusions should be prepared from:
The most convenient way is to pour 2 tablespoons of dry raw materials into a half-liter thermos and pour boiling water overnight. In the morning, strain and drink 30 minutes before meals. There is no need to use them in the evening so as not to interrupt your sleep.
Folk methods should be treated as supportive. They do not exclude the use of medications.
It is convenient to use ready-made bath preparations that combine pine needles and sea salt
The appearance of swelling in the legs is a reason to consult a doctor. For dispensary patients who are informed about their heart disease, the symptom means the need to adjust the treatment of the underlying disease.
Diuretics (diuretics) help remove excess fluid accumulation and improve blood circulation. Depending on the degree of damage, the doctor prescribes:
Taking diuretics should not lead to dehydration. Drinking herbal teas at the same time enhances the effect of the tablets.
It is imperative to take care of replenishing the mineral composition of the blood and vitamins with diet and medications. Panangin or other drugs containing potassium and magnesium are usually recommended.
Do not forget that in the treatment of edema of cardiac origin, mental and physical rest is important. The patient should:
Treatment of edema in heart failure is included in the complex therapy of congestion. It is impossible to consider it separately; the influence of the underlying disease is too great. Therefore, the choice of treatment method must always be agreed with your doctor.
Many people, especially women, face the problem of leg swelling. The reasons for this phenomenon may be different. It is believed that they appear due to the large amount of liquid drunk during the day. Most often, the cause may be varicose veins, lymphovenous insufficiency or deep vein thrombosis. The second place is occupied by kidney and liver diseases. Next come factors such as joint problems, abdominal diseases, allergic reactions, oncology, lung pathology, and pregnancy. Swelling of the legs occurs due to heart failure.
Due to the fact that the list of diseases that can cause swelling of the legs is large, it will not be possible to make a diagnosis without tests and instrumental diagnostics. The usual set of tests is taken, plus a biochemical blood test is done and blood clotting is checked. It is also necessary to do an ultrasound of the abdominal organs, an ECG, a study of blood vessels and veins (USDS), only then can we say for what reason the swelling of the legs occurred.
With heart failure, in addition to swelling of the legs, there are other symptoms. The liquid permeates the tissues and accumulates in the abdominal cavity, so the swelling is dense, and when pressed, a dimple remains. There is an enlargement of the liver. In addition, there is shortness of breath, tachycardia (rapid heartbeat), there may be cyanosis of the lips, pale skin, and any physical activity becomes a burden.
To relieve swelling of the legs due to heart failure, you do not need to immediately grab diuretics. They sometimes have the opposite effect, as they can disrupt the water-salt balance, which can negatively affect cardiac activity. Therefore, when signs appear, it is necessary to adjust nutrition. You need to consume less salt, no more than two grams per day. The amount of water consumed needs to be reduced. On average, no more than one liter per day, this applies to the volume of all liquid. The diet must include foods high in potassium: rice, oatmeal, baked potatoes, bananas, dried fruits (dried apricots, prunes, raisins). It is good to take infusions and decoctions of rosehip - it is rich in vitamins B and C, this will strengthen the walls of blood vessels and have an anti-inflammatory effect.
If swelling of the legs due to heart failure is excluded, and other causes of their occurrence are identified, then the specialist should prescribe appropriate treatment. But there are general recommendations that will help cope with this problem.
Edema is an accumulation of fluid in the tissues and organs of the body. Edema is a fairly common occurrence that accompanies heart disease. Their location directly depends on the cause of heart failure: problems with the left ventricle of the heart provoke pulmonary edema, and damage to the right ventricle causes swelling of the legs through fluid and salt retention in the body.
In the initial stages of the disease, the legs first swell due to heart failure, and then they spread to other parts of the body. Both legs swell symmetrically. At first, the legs swell not very much, but after rest they return to normal.
6. Edema is combined with other symptoms:
• Exercise intolerance.
7. Disappear after proper treatment of the disease.
Legs swell due to heart failure, what should I do? You need to understand that it is not the swelling itself that needs to be treated, but the disease that caused it. In the early stages of the disease, it is quite easy to combat swelling of the legs: rest, massage, good sleep. But at a later date, these measures will not give any result.
To eliminate swelling of the legs due to heart failure, the patient will be prescribed the following medications:
1. Diuretics (diuretics) help the body get rid of excess fluid. These can be decoctions of medicinal herbs:
A diet containing vegetables and fruits is also very effective: cucumbers, cabbage, pumpkin, baked potatoes, apples.
Swelling of the legs is a symptom . which is manifested by visible swelling of the lower extremities, an increase in their circumference, and, as a rule, other symptoms and discomfort.
There are a huge number of causes of swelling . These can be general diseases (for example, cardiac edema of the legs), as well as direct pathologies of the lower extremities. Swelling of the legs can be unilateral or bilateral, and have varying degrees of severity (swelling of the fingers and toes, or up to the thigh). Based on these signs, as well as additional symptoms, the doctor can give the patient a specific diagnosis.
Below we look at the most common causes of leg swelling.
Sometimes leg swelling can occur in completely healthy people. They are associated with excessive consumption of water and salt . Most often such swelling of the legs occurs in the summer in the heat.
During hot weather, a person consumes a large amount of liquid, which enters the blood and does not always have time to be eliminated from the body through sweat and urine. If there is a large amount of salt in the food, then when it enters the body, it contributes to fluid retention. As a result, the heart can no longer cope with large amounts of blood, and, first of all, it stagnates in the lower extremities.
Many other factors can contribute to stagnation:
In this case, swelling of the legs may not indicate any disease. It is enough to reduce the amount of fluid and salt consumed, and they will go away on their own. But still, all people who have this problem need to visit a doctor and consult.
Swelling of the legs can be a consequence of taking certain medications.
For many autoimmune and allergic diseases, adrenal insufficiency and tumors, adrenal cortex drugs - glucocorticoids - are prescribed. If taken for a long time, this can cause swelling of the legs, since glucocorticoids also affect the functioning of the heart and blood circulation.
Female and male sex hormones can retain fluid in the body and lead to swelling of the legs:
Some medications that are prescribed for high blood pressure can cause leg swelling.
If you are taking any of the above remedies and your legs become swollen in the evenings or during the day, it is worth visiting a doctor for advice. Most likely, the doctor will replace the drugs with others, or change their dosage.
Varicose veins are pathological overstretching of veins and stagnation of blood in them. The most common problem is varicose veins in the legs.
The following reasons contribute to this:
the walls of the veins and their valves include connective tissue, which in some people, especially those susceptible to varicose veins, is too weak and can stretch greatly - perhaps this is the most important answer to the question of why legs swell with varicose veins; all of the above factors contribute to blood stagnation and overstretching of veins with varicose veins: excess body weight, sedentary lifestyle, excess water and salt consumption;
Swelling of the legs is usually the initial manifestation of varicose veins. They most often appear in the evenings, and various unpleasant sensations, a feeling of heaviness, pain, numbness or tingling of the fingers, and severe fatigue of the legs are noted.
Varicose veins of the lower extremities are divided into four stages:
1. Heaviness, fatigue and other unpleasant sensations in the evenings. Often, many people attribute these manifestations to fatigue at work, not realizing that this is a harbinger of the disease, and it is at this stage that it is easiest to treat.
2. Swelling of the feet and toes that occurs from time to time. At this stage, many patients also do not think about why their legs swell. Enlarged veins may be visible under the skin, which may prompt a person to visit a doctor.
3. At this stage, not only do the legs swell greatly in the evenings, but also the tortuous dilated veins that are located under the skin are clearly visible. At this stage, surgical treatment methods will most likely have to be used.
4. At the fourth stage, swelling of the legs fades into the background, and disorders caused by impaired blood flow in the lower extremities become more significant. The color of the skin becomes dark, severe pain is noted, to the point that lameness may develop. Trophic ulcers may appear.
How to treat leg swelling caused by varicose veins? First of all, you should visit a doctor who will examine you and make a diagnosis and determine the stage of the disease.
For swelling of the legs caused by varicose veins, an ultrasound with Doppler ultrasound may be prescribed to assess the speed of blood flow in the veins of the lower extremities. If the doctor suspects that the patient has deep vein thrombosis, then phlebography may be prescribed: injecting a contrast agent into the veins and taking x-rays.
In the first and second stages of varicose veins, you can use a special ointment for swelling of the legs. Your doctor may tell you to wear elastic bandages or stockings. It is also worth doing gymnastics periodically. take cold baths and foot massages, and place your feet on an elevated surface during sleep to ensure normal blood flow and reduce stress on the veins.
Almost all women experience swelling in their legs during pregnancy. Edema during pregnancy is usually temporary and goes away very quickly.
They can have various reasons:
As a rule, swelling of the legs during pregnancy is a normal physiological phenomenon. But still, a woman should visit a doctor to have an examination and, possibly, prevent the onset of the disease.
Some women during pregnancy take a diuretic on their own for swelling of the legs. It is not recommended to do this without a doctor's prescription. Each medicine affects not only the mother’s body, but also the child. For example, many diuretics flush minerals from the body that are necessary for an actively developing fetus.
Swelling of the legs in heart failure is a very common phenomenon, since pathologies of the cardiovascular system are generally very widespread in modern society.
Heart failure is not an independent disease, but a syndrome (a set of individual symptoms and manifestations) that accompanies many diseases, such as atherosclerosis, inflammatory diseases and heart defects. hypertension, coronary heart disease. certain types of arrhythmias, etc.
Heart failure is accompanied by the following characteristic symptoms:
1. Swelling of the legs in the evening . This sign of heart disease differs from kidney pathology. in which swelling always occurs on the face, and in the morning. In a person with heart failure, the main function of the heart, pumping, is weakened. Therefore, it is more difficult for the heart to lift blood from below, from the legs. During night sleep, a person is in a horizontal position, so the load on the heart is reduced. But a person spends the whole day sitting or standing. By evening, the heart's resource is depleted, causing swelling in the legs. When, with heart failure, the legs swell in the evening, their skin acquires a bluish tint. Swelling can involve only the fingers and toes, or can spread very high - it all depends on how the heart fails to cope with its function.
2. Dyspnea. It is also due to the fact that the heart is not able to adequately pump blood through the organs and tissues, so they constantly experience oxygen starvation.
3. In heart failure, high blood pressure . less often – reduced.
4. Pain in the heart area . most often they bother the patient in the left half of the chest, as if they are squeezing.
5. All patients with heart failure suffer from fatigue.
What to do if your legs are swollen and you are concerned about other causes of heart failure? It is worth visiting a cardiologist or therapist. The doctor will examine you and prescribe additional tests: ECG. ECHO-cardiography, chest x-ray.
Treatment for leg swelling caused by heart failure includes:
Cardiac swelling of the legs should only be treated with the participation of a specialist doctor.
Sometimes the cause of swelling of the legs is thrombophlebitis of the deep veins of the lower extremities. This is a pathology based on the formation of a blood clot in the lumen of a vein and inflammation of its wall.
The causes of thrombophlebitis and swelling of the legs can be:
During thrombophlebitis, severe swelling of the legs may appear, which is accompanied by pain and other unpleasant sensations (numbness, tingling, “crawling”). There is an increase in body temperature and general malaise. In the absence of adequate treatment, thrombophlebitis can present with more serious symptoms than swelling of the legs. One of the complications of the disease is pulmonary embolism. when a detached blood clot enters the blood vessels of the lungs.
Treatment of swelling of the legs due to thrombophlebitis is carried out by a phlebologist. If the disease is caused by an infection, then antibiotics are used. In some cases, surgical intervention is prescribed.
This disease refers to pathologies of the lymphatic system.
Due to the high blood pressure in small arterial vessels, it sweats through their walls and enters the surrounding tissues. In the veins, on the contrary, the pressure is lower. Therefore, all the blood that enters the tissues from the arterial capillaries is absorbed by the venous capillaries. But this does not happen completely. Some of the fluid still remains in the tissues. Its absorption must be carried out by lymphatic capillaries. This fluid becomes part of the lymph. With lymphedema, there is a disruption of this process, since the outflow of lymph through the lymphatic vessels is impaired. Swelling of the legs occurs.
This condition may be caused by:
With lymphedema, severe swelling of the legs, usually both, is observed. Sometimes only the right or left leg swells. Once formed, lymphedema usually remains for life. Treatment of leg swelling caused by lymphedema is a long and complex process.
The following methods are used:
The last stage of lymphedema, when very severe swelling of the legs is noted, is called elephantiasis (elephantiasis) - the lower limbs become very thickened. Depending on the cause, lymphedema may cause swelling in the legs and arms.
Myxedema is a mucous swelling that develops when the normal function of the thyroid gland is disrupted. This condition is known as hypothyroidism. in which disturbances in thinking, weight gain, lethargy, lethargy, and depression are also noted.
Due to myxedema, facial features change, the tongue becomes too large and does not fit in the oral cavity.
Swelling of the legs is associated with the so-called pretibial myxedema, which is located on the front surface of the legs.
Hypothyroidism can be congenital or acquired. To identify congenital hypothyroidism, special screening tests are required in all newborns. In adults, blood tests are performed for thyroid hormones.
With hypothyroidism and associated myxedema, it is not possible to get rid of swelling of the legs without treating the underlying disease. Pathology is the responsibility of an endocrinologist.
Often, swelling of the legs is associated with liver pathologies. Most often, edema occurs with cirrhosis, a severe dysfunction of the organ.
A number of reasons can lead to cirrhosis:
In severe liver pathologies, swelling of the legs has the following causes:
1. The liver produces albumin proteins. which provide normal oncotic blood pressure, that is, they are able to retain fluid in the bloodstream. When this process is disrupted, the amount of proteins in the blood decreases, and water rushes into the tissues.
2. The liver receives the portal vein, which provides blood flow from the entire intestine. If the outflow is disrupted and the pressure in the portal vein increases, the normal outflow of blood from the entire lower half of the body is disrupted.
With cirrhosis, swelling of the legs may be accompanied by other symptoms characteristic of liver disease: jaundice. accumulation of fluid in the abdominal cavity and other body cavities, skin itching. exhaustion, disruption of brain function (so-called hepatic encephalopathy).
Patients with liver pathologies should be constantly monitored by a hepatologist (a specialist in liver diseases) and an infectious disease specialist (if viral hepatitis has been diagnosed).
Very often, swelling in the legs occurs due to infectious and inflammatory diseases.
The main infectious and inflammatory diseases accompanied by swelling of the legs:
1. Rheumatism . This is a pathology that is caused by a separate type of streptococcus. These pathogens have one interesting feature: their cells contain molecules that are very similar to the substances of human connective tissue. It is part of articular cartilage and heart valves. As a result, the immune system begins to destroy harmful bacteria. and the body's own tissues. A characteristic manifestation of rheumatism is rheumatoid arthritis - inflammation of large joints (most often the knee), which develops pain, impaired movement, and swelling of the legs in the joint area. Swelling of the legs and pain are characterized by the fact that they last a short time and quickly pass, appearing on one or the other joint. In the future, rheumatism leads to the formation of heart disease. Diagnosis of the disease is carried out using laboratory methods. Antibiotics and various anti-inflammatory drugs are used for treatment. which are prescribed by a rheumatologist.
2. Erysipelas . Caused by streptococci. It also often affects the lower extremities. In this case, swelling of the legs appears, in the place of which red spots with clear boundaries are found. The spots are painful, the skin in this place has a warmer color. At the same time, the patient’s general condition is disrupted: health worsens, body temperature rises. Antibacterial drugs are used to treat erysipelas. In the absence of adequate therapy, more severe infectious complications may develop.
3. Osteomyelitis is an infectious and inflammatory process in the bone, which is very often accompanied by swelling of the left or right leg, depending on where the pathological process is located. In addition to swelling, osteomyelitis is accompanied by severe pain in the limb and impaired movement. The patient's body temperature rises, and general health may deteriorate sharply. Without adequate help, very serious complications can occur.
4. Swelling of the legs is almost always accompanied by purulent-inflammatory diseases such as boils. carbuncles, phlegmons. Such pathologies require antibiotic therapy or surgical treatment. The decision is made by the surgeon after examining the patient. Panaritium, a purulent inflammation of one of the toes, can also lead to swelling.
5. Infectious arthritis is a severe infection of the joint, which can also cause swelling of the legs. The causative agents of the disease can enter the joint or directly during an injury. either with blood or lymph flow. After this, the skin over the joint turns red, swells, severe pain appears, and movements are severely difficult. Body temperature rises and health worsens. If you experience joint pain and fever, you should consult a doctor who will conduct an examination and prescribe treatment. Infectious arthritis is treated with antibiotics.
Many injuries are accompanied by the development of swelling of the legs:
1. Bruises are injuries to soft tissue. Elementary blows lead to bruising. At the site of the bruise there is always swelling, hemorrhages, and the feeling is painful. In the first 3 days, apply ice to the site of the injury and make compresses with cold water. Subsequently, you can make alcohol compresses and apply iodine nets.
2. Dislocation. Most often, the patella is dislocated. People who have congenital weakness of the ligamentous apparatus are especially susceptible to this injury. In this case, the patella moves outward from the joint, severe pain is noted, the leg is fixed in a half-bent position, and further movements become impossible. Treatment for a luxated patella is to have it realigned, usually under local anesthesia. This is easy to do - just straighten your leg and put a little pressure on the patella. Then an x-ray is required to rule out a more serious injury, such as a fracture. Swelling of the leg persists for several more days; a plaster splint is applied to the leg for up to three weeks.
3. Hemarthrosis is an injury that is accompanied by hemorrhage into a joint, most often the knee. In this case, pain, impaired movement, swelling of the right or left leg are noted. The diagnosis of hemarthrosis can be made most accurately during the arthroscopy procedure: during it, the joint cavity is examined using special endoscopic equipment. During arthroscopy, blood can be removed from the joint cavity. This can also be done using a puncture. when, under local anesthesia, a needle from a regular syringe is inserted into the joint. A plaster splint is then placed on the leg. All procedures are performed only in a specialized medical institution.
4. Swelling of the leg very often develops after a fracture. The most common fractures are: the tibia and fibula, ankles, and foot bones (including toes). Fractures of the femur are somewhat less common, since it has very high strength. The most dangerous fracture is the femoral neck, as it is often accompanied by impaired blood flow to the bone. Characteristic symptoms of fractures of the lower extremities are pain, swelling of the leg, impaired movement, visible deformation, and hemorrhages under the skin. The final diagnosis of a fracture is made in the emergency room after an x-ray. If necessary, the fragments are reduced under general or local anesthesia, and a plaster splint is applied to the limb for a certain period of time. As the acute period of the injury subsides and the bones heal, the swelling of the leg subsides.
Many allergic reactions and autoimmune diseases have characteristic manifestations in the form of edema, including edema of the lower extremities:
1. Allergic arthritis is a large group of allergic diseases that are accompanied by joint damage. Most often they are a complication of some other articular pathology. These can be infectious processes, injuries, metabolic disorders, etc. With allergic arthritis, swelling of the legs is noted, which goes away quite quickly. It usually occurs after a limb has been in one position for a long time. In this case, the swelling is accompanied by redness and pain. It is often possible to relieve such swelling in the legs with antiallergic drugs, but in any case, treatment of the initial disease with an appropriate medical specialist is indicated.
2. Quincke's edema is an allergic swelling of the skin and mucous membranes that occurs upon contact with allergens. Most often it is located on the face, but in some cases it appears on the legs. This condition passes very quickly. It disappears immediately after taking antiallergic drugs. All patients with allergies are diagnosed and treated by an allergist.
The saliva of some insects and snakes is poisonous or contains allergens, resulting in swelling of the leg after a bite.
Swelling of the legs and other parts of the body can develop after bites from bees, wasps, arachnids, and poisonous snakes (viper, copperhead, snakes, viper, cobra, etc.).
First aid for animal bites is provided in accordance with the rules, which depend on what animal the victim was bitten by.
Modern pharmacies offer a large number of remedies for swelling of the legs. But in most cases, they are intended to relieve swelling caused by heat, excess fluid and salt intake, overwork, and the initial stages of varicose veins and heart failure.
Treatment of the initial diseases that cause edema is carried out only by a medical specialist. Timely seeking medical help will help to promptly identify diseases of the heart, liver, kidneys and other organs. And timely effective treatment will help get rid of the symptom and prevent more serious complications.
Before use, you should consult a specialist.