Many people with PAD may not present with any symptoms, while others may have mild symptoms.

Some of the symptoms noted during PAD include:

• Claudication or leg pain while walking or during activity that disappears after rest
• Painful cramping in the hip, thigh, or calf muscles
• Weakness or numbness, tingling, or feeling of pins and needles in the lower legs or feet
• Coldness in the lower leg or foot
• Sores on the legs, feet, or toes that do not heal
• Change in colour of the legs
• Loss of hair or slow growing hair on the legs and feet
• Slow growing toenails
• Shiny skin on the legs
• Weak pulse or no pulse in the legs or feet

Common tests & procedures

Physical examination: Check for signs of PAD such as pulsation in the leg or decreased pulsation in the affected limb and poor wound healing.

Ankle-brachial index: Obtaining and comparing the blood pressures in the ankle and arm.

Doppler ultrasound: To assess blood flow through the arteries in the affected limbs.

Angiogram: Viewing blood flow through the arteries by injecting a dye into the blood vessels and obtaining a series of images.

Catheter-based angiography: Guiding a catheter through an artery in the groin and injecting the dye to obtain images of the affected area.

Blood test: To measure the blood sugar, cholesterol, and triglyceride levels.