Causes and warning symptoms of Buerger's disease

The article was professionally consulted with Master, Doctor Bui Tien Dat - Emergency Department - Vinmec Hai Phong International General Hospital.

Buerger's disease, also known as thrombophlebitis, is characterized by pain in the feet and hands caused by stagnant circulation in the legs and arms. The disease can cause ulceration and necrosis, leading to mandatory amputation. So what is Buerger's disease? What causes the disease and the clinical warning signs of the disease?

Buerger belongs to vascular disease, which is also one of the causes of inflammation of the blood vessels in the legs and hands, especially the hands and feet.
Buerger's disease causes narrowing and blockage of blood vessels leading to a decrease in blood circulation to the hands and feet, causing painful symptoms, long-term loss of nourishment and even limb necrosis. This condition can occur consecutively on a single circuit or intermittently into many different circuit segments, so there will be damaged circuit segments alternating between normal circuit segments.
The disease often occurs in the plantar artery and vein in the foot or lower leg, sometimes the artery in the hand and wrist.
Buerger's disease occurs mainly in countries of Southeast Asia, India or the Middle East, especially Bangladesh.
The disease is common between the ages of 19 and 55 years old and the rate is much higher in men than in women.

The cause of Buerger's disease is still unclear. However, through practical studies from clinical case data, it has been shown that Buerger's disease mainly occurs in smokers. Cigarettes contain high levels of nicotine, but Buerger's disease is an autoimmune disease triggered by nicotine itself.
According to our body's defense mechanism, when foreign agents invade and cause harm, the body will secrete antibodies to destroy and fight against harmful agents. However, in immune diseases, the body produces antibodies to attack its own cells. Therefore, in people with Buerger's disease, the more they smoke, the worse the disease gets, the worse it gets.

The disease occurs due to the inflammation of the blood vessels leading to the inability to circulate blood to the limbs. Therefore, in the early stages of the disease, patients often feel cold, swollen hands and feet, red, then gradually pale and then gradually turn blue to pale purple due to blood stasis in the lower region. of the genera. Pain is a common manifestation and is also the main symptom of disease caused by obstruction. There may be intermittent claudication in the leg when the patient moves and moves, especially when walking, but the pain goes away with rest. When the disease is advanced, the patient will have pain even at rest, the pain increases at night. You can feel tingling in the hands and feet, itching that increases when it is cold. The disease lasts a long time, the lower part of the limb gradually loses nourishment, leading to numbness, pain like needles, gradually muscular dystrophy, sensory disturbances even loss of sensation, purple black then ulceration, infection. Infection, irreversible tissue necrosis can even cause sepsis, which is life-threatening.

When there are abnormal signs in the legs and arms, the first thing to do is to see a specialist right away so that they can be examined, accurately diagnosed and treated promptly, avoiding unfortunate complications. after.
In addition to the treatment prescribed by the doctor, Buerger's patients also need to note a few things to help improve the disease better:
Stop smoking, avoid exposure to secondhand smoke. Keep your body warm and avoid cold places because cold can make symptoms worse and more uncomfortable. Exercise gently and regularly to increase blood circulation to the extremities. You can use some gentle massage or warm compress to dilate blood vessels, increase blood flow to the legs and hands. Do not sit for a long time or stand for a long time because it will increase the pressure on the extremities, the blood pooling a lot will make the patient feel more uncomfortable pain. Do not wear tight clothing, wear comfortable shoes to avoid injury. Buerger's disease in people who continue to smoke will have a poor prognosis, the disease progresses rapidly, gets worse, the risk of gangrene amputation is very high, especially in people with a history of smoking. over 20 years.
However, if detected and treated in time, with proper care according to the instructions of the treating doctor, the patient can still recover completely to normal, with a good prognosis of preserving the limbs. Therefore, go to the doctor as soon as you have abnormal symptoms such as cold hands and feet, pain when walking, movement, relief at rest, cyanosis, swelling... for examination and treatment. treatment as soon as possible.