Vascular Disorder
What is Vascular Disorder?
Vascular disorders denote medical complications occurring in the vascular system of the body, including the arteries, veins, and lymphatics. In short, any complication occurring in the network of blood vessels is named as vascular disorder. The network of blood vessels carry the blood from the whole body to the heart, which further helps in maintaining proper functioning of all organs in the body.
The severity level of the disorders can range from mild to life-threatening. Disorder in the arteries, named arteriosclerosis, is caused when the arteries become thick and stiff. Blood flow through blood vessel from body parts to the heart and brain can be obstructed due to development of blood clots in it. Some times blood vessels break down due to their weakness or low strength. Vascular disorders are seen mostly in older people who do not have enough strength in their body.
Other than this people who have heredity or family history of vascular or heart disease are more prone of getting these disorders. In addition, special conditions like pregnancy, any injury in which bleeding was occurred in very high amount, working for long hours while sitting or standing, suffering from diabetes or cholesterol from long period, bad habits like smoking and drinking, and extra fat in the body due to obesity are considered as some of the common initiators of heart disease or disorder.
Adapting good and simple lifestyle is the key of keeping yourself healthy. Eat healthy food that is less in fat and spices, drink less, do not smoke, be active, do exercises, and loose extra fat to keep your body fit and fine.
Symptoms of Vascular Disorder
A list is given below to define the symptoms occur in vascular disorder.
1. Pain in the region, where arteries, veins, or lymphatics are affected, is noticed. It causes pain in the heart due to insufficient supply of blood.
2. Obstruction in the blood flow by the veins and arteries of the hand causes skin color change in the fingertips. It changes the skin color white to blue because of spasm formation. Color change to red when flow of blood become regular.
3. Too much cold can cause non-healing ulcer in the fingers
4. Patient who is suffering from vascular disorder is highly intolerant to severe cold.
5. Lymphatic disorder can cause swelling in particular affected region.
Causes of Vascular Disorders
There are several causes of vascular disorders and the level of severity related to them can vary very much. But one is thing is sure that they take long time to get recover from. Given below is the list of disorders:
Change in the anatomy: Variation in the anatomy of arteries can bring vascular disorder in the body. Function of the arteries is to transfer oxygenated blood from the heart to the fingertips. Associated to it, veins function to bring the blood back to heart. The radial and ulnar arteries act in the main lead to transfer blood from heart to the fingertips. Now, if any variation occurs in the anatomy, it brings problem in the proper functioning and thus causes vascular disorder.
Due to trauma: Harming blood vessels by inserting some sharp object in it like knife or blade can result in problem in vascular system. Sometimes injuries like this can turn into very serious condition. This type of injuries can obstruct the path of blood vessels by making blood clots. Due to halt in blood flow the fingertips will not get enough blood that is needed for its proper functioning. The symptoms are quite visible like change in skin color into whitish tint, fingertips will become cold, and pain starts occurring in the wrist. Immediate treatment is required to carry on the blood flow. Injuries in blood vessels that are directly responsible for providing blood to the heart and brain are very crucial, whereas injuries in some other vessels are quite normal.
Aneurysms – Another cause of disorder in blood vessels, known as aneurysm, can be defined as weakness of the vessel. It is caused due to expansion of the vessel that results into weakness in the walls of the vessels. It produces feeling of numbness in the fingers. Because of the formation of some blood clots in the vessels the flow of blood can be obstructed. In some cases, the clots can transfer to the vessels in the finger tips causing coldness, pain, and numbness in the fingertips.
Vascular malformations – It is caused due to abnormal connection or attachment between arteries and veins. Due to this, transfer of excess amount of blood to the small blood vessels can result into expansion of their size. The flow of excess blood can cause pain in that particular location, along with numbness or sometime heaviness feeling. Patient might have excess of sweating, hair growth in unwanted location, fever, or in severe spontaneous bleeding from the expanded blood vessels. Curing in mild condition just need wearing of compression gloves to compress the extra expanded blood vessels. Whereas, severe case when bleeding is spontaneous from the vessels requires surgical correction of the vessels.
Raynaud’s – Raynaud’s phenomenon denotes obstruction in the blood flow from the arteries due to spasm formed in it. Due to spasm, occurring due to excessive cold and intake of tobacco, changes in skin color happens. The skin color of the finger changes from white to blue. And, at the resolving time of spasm the color further changes to red, showing flow of blood in the arteries.
It can be cured by no smoking; no consumption of tobacco in any form, and by avoiding very cold weather. Further if you can not avoid cold weather, wear woolen clothes like sweaters or gloves to protect yourself from these complications. If not taken properly, the condition might lead to non-healing ulcer. Surgical treatment is required to separate the sympathetic nerves around the vessels.
The disorders can also happen due to formation of some tumors, occlusive factors, kidney failure, hypertension, diabetes, or to patient who are on dialysis.
Occupational factors, like working on or with vibrating tools and in excess cold can be also considered as some causes of vascular disorders.
Diseases in arteries due to vascular disorders:
Vascular disorder can lead to vascular disease in the body. The diseases are considered to be major factor behind the morbidity and mortality happening in Western world.
Arteriosclerosis is a form of arteriosclerotic vascular disease that mainly affects the important arteries in the body, supplying blood in the heart, brain and lower most parts. It is caused due to compression, narrowing, and occlusion of the arteries. And it can lead to medical complications like stroke, myocardial infarction, and vascular insufficiency. Factors which are behind this disease include excess of smoking, drinking, and diseases like hypertension and diabetes persisting from long period.
Other disease, arteritis is caused due to tenderness in the medium arteries due to rupturing and occlusion. Reasons behind the disease include bacterial infection, allergies, and syphilis.
Other very general diseases are rheumatoid arthritis, periarteritis nodosa, lupus erythematosus. In addition, too much exposure to cold can also cause problem in arteries.
Diseases in veins caused due to vascular disorders:
Varicose vein is most popular disease caused due to improper venous circulation. It happens due to loss of functions by two types of veins, the greater and lesser sapheous. Damage in the veins found very deep in the body lead to severe condition, named deep-vein thrombosis.
The condition can be treated by doing surgery to correct the vein functioning or completely removal of the damaged veins.
Diseases in lymphatics due to vascular disorders:
Medical complications like tumors, parasitic attack, and severe swelling leads to obstruction in the lymphatics, causing sudden onset of menses in the women. Lymphedema is another critical condition, which happens to the patient on permanent basis.
Diagnosis of Vascular Disorder
1. Physical examination is done by looking at the discoloration of the fingertips, edema or severe swelling, gangrene formation in the fingertips, and by measuring temperature and calculating heart beats.
2. Pulses at the armpit, elbow, and finger are examined to detect their presence and frequency.
3. If the case is critical, then Doppler test is conducted to check the flow of blood in the arteries and veins.
4. Special tests like MRI, along with magnetic resonance angiography, are done to detect affected vessels. Arteriography is done to detect affected arteries in the hand and arm.
5. Cold stress tests are taken to detect spasm in the blood vessels by putting hand in the cold water for some calculated time.
Treatment of Vascular Disorders
Treatment includes both medication and surgical procedure. For mild case, some medicines are prescribed by the doctor. And for critical case, surgical treatment is given to correct the affected artery, veins or any other blood vessels. Surgeries require more time to recover from and they are quite costly.
Critical stage of these disorders can lead heart and brain problems, again requiring high-level treatment.
Medical clothes, like compression gloves can be recommended by doctors to compress slight enlargement of arteries of the hand.
Addition to these treatments, it is required that every person should follow some simple rule in his/her life to prevent himself from these complication. He should cut off his smoking and drinking habits completely, if he is facing any mild symptoms of this disorder. And, try to keep your weight in control along with sugar level and blood pressure level.
