Window Shoppers Disease

Diseases of the pelvic and leg vessels are the cause of circulatory disturbances of the legs and the gluteal muscles. In the beginning, typical symptoms are calve pain, sometimes pain of the upper thighs and buttocks, that only appear while walking and fade when resting. If blood circulation continues to weaken, pain can arise even when resting and become very strong, causing patients to leave the leg hanging from the bed at night. Only at very late stages does the condition lead to necrosis (dying of tissue) or gangrene, making an amputation necessary.
Erectile disorder can be a sign of circulatory dysfunction in the pelvic area, which are diagnosed and treated by an angiologist.

The most common disease of the pelvic and leg veins is arteriosclerosis with deposits, narrowing and the threat of blood clot. Yet inflammatory diseases, embolisms (e.g. in atrial fibrillation) or genetical diseases can cause the occlusion of blood vessels as well.

Diagnosis

The medical history of the patient, a physical exam and measuring blood circulation using oscillography are used for diagnosis, as well as measuring blood pressure at the ankles (ABI) and monitoring arteries and blood flow with ultrasound (duplex sonography).

Therapy

If at all possible, the cause should be treated. Narrowed arteries in the leg or pelvic area should be widened using balloon dilatation or stent implants. Alternatively, a bypass operation or thrombendarterectomy can be performed.
Periodic walking (at least 30 minutes) is an important factor, to encourage the regeneration of blood vessels.