What is "circulatory pain"?

What is "circulatory pain"?

Marc Darrow (Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, Joint Rehabilitation Sports Medical Center, Inc. ) gives expert video advice on: What are some specific types of chronic pain?; What is "somatic pain"?; How is somatic pain treated? and more...

The term for circulatory pain is usually claudication, which means that there is ischemia at a certain area of the body. Ischemia just means a lack of oxygen. Oxygen is what gives us the ability to create energy in an area of the body. In a claudication area, or an area where there's ischemia, the circulation is not good because there may be atherosclerosis, or hardening of the arteries, or blockage to an area which we call peripheral vascular disease. We'll find that often in the case of someone who's walking and their legs start aching. That's what we call peripheral vascular disease claudication pain.