Leg pain. Is it good, serious or urgent? Doctissimo provides diagnostic guidance, diagnoses some of the main causes and invites you to consult your doctor.
If the leg is anatomically between the knee and the ankle, the entire lower leg will be affected when the patient has pain in the leg. When experiencing leg pain; A medical examination is essential for proper diagnosis and treatment.
Leg Pain: Why Do I Have Pain?
If you have leg pain, your doctor’s examination will look for several things that will allow you to make a diagnosis based on:
What vascular diseases can cause leg pain?
If the pain is arterial: the legs are cold, without veins, white or blue in color… and in most cases both legs are affected to varying degrees;
If the pain is nerve-related: the leg is warm, always pale, blue or red, sometimes hard and swollen or enlarged.
This is a real emergency. The importance and function of the neck is alarming. Ischemia occurs when a blood vessel is torn (due to a car accident, gunshot, knife, etc.) or blocked by a blood clot or embolism.
Both legs were paralyzed and bleeding, the pain was very severe. Then you should urgently call SAMU by dialing 15.
These procedures are performed in a hospital environment and require urgent removal of the blockage (stenting, bypass surgery, etc.).
Phlebitis: What are the symptoms of varicose veins in the legs?
Phlebitis is a blood clot that forms in the veins of the legs (superficial or deep).
Superficial phlebitis occurs in people with varicose veins. The skin over the varicose veins may become red, warm, and painful to the touch. The beef may swell;
Deep vein phlebitis often causes severe pain and swelling in the lower leg, but may be limited to a feeling of heaviness in the leg. A low-grade fever (38°C) may occur. Wear supportive stockings and perform Doppler. If venous insufficiency is diagnosed, surgical treatment is required;
Other treatments may be discussed: varicose veins or sclerosis treatment with microvasodilation (or cosmetic injections of Aetoxisclerol).
A feeling of muscle pain the day after regular activity (e.g. exercise, cycling, walking, etc.).
If there is a cause, it is this.
Cramps are usually benign and do not occur (apparently idiopathic). But it can also come from:
A tingling sensation can occur during labor, sometimes accompanied by a loud noise. The muscles can no longer move. If the tendon is strained or torn, edema and then a hematoma occur. In the event of impact, gaps and bumps (muscle recoil) can be felt.
General diseases
General medical conditions (hypothyroidism, Parkinson’s disease, etc.) can cause muscle discomfort. It can cause knee pain and can be accompanied by stiffness, swelling, and even stiffness in the joint
The symptoms of a ruptured popliteal cyst are similar to those of phlebitis or a ruptured vein: severe pain in the groin, redness, swelling, tenderness, and difficulty pressing.
Sciatica is a radicular pain that affects the spinal nerves at the level of the fifth lumbar vertebra (L5) or the first sacral vertebra (S1).
Lumbar sciatica usually causes pain in the lower back, stiffness in the spine, and a burning sensation that can be traced with the fingers like a cord.
Acute lumbar sciatica: It is recommended to continue activities appropriate for the pain and use paracetamol or nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs and/or mild opioids to control the pain. Complex lumbar sciatica (paralytic sciatica, cauda equina syndrome sciatica). Emergency room consultations, MRIs, and emergency surgery.
Narrow lumbar spinal canal
Nerve roots are compressed in the space at the base of the spine.
Severe pain in the legs, numbness, excessive sweating… the entire autonomic nervous system is overactive.
Medical support:
Good medical care is based on rest, rehabilitation, and sometimes acupuncture… It will eventually heal, but it takes months.
Causes of the disease
Leg pain can be related to an infectious disease (such as the flu or widespread muscle pain from COVID-19) or a bacterial infection, including:
Febrile erythema multiforme:
Red, hot, painful area on the legs and surrounding swelling, sometimes with red or blue (purpuric) blisters or sometimes with a mild fever, which is usually severe.
These are emergency treatments: 7 days of antibiotic treatment, finding and treating entry points in the foot (mostly toes, cuts, insect bites), rest, walking in trees, modified tetanus shots. The bacteria disappeared after about ten days.
Note: Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs are strictly contraindicated. They can make the disease worse!
If the redness and swelling spread rapidly, if there is a loud noise under the skin, if there is a distinct feeling of discomfort (voltage drop), etc., please call 15 for service assistance.
Osteomyelitis
These chronic bone infections are usually bacterial and are most often caused by Staphylococcus aureus, but can also be caused by other bacteria.
Osteomyelitis mostly affects children and occurs in childhood in the bones or bacteriosis. It presents with general symptoms (fever, rash) and local findings related to the bone marrow (white skin, pain, tenderness, swelling). If your child has recently developed a single cough without fever, they should see a doctor immediately.
It is practiced in a hospital setting and is mainly based on antibiotic therapy.
A psychogenic origin
Leg pain can have a psychogenic origin: depression, hysterical conversion, hypochondria, etc.
This pathology, still little known, is relatively common. The symptoms vary, but we often notice fatigue, difficulty concentrating, painful sensations and unexplained muscle stiffness, which can affect different parts of the body (shoulders, chest, back, neck, thighs, etc.). etc.).
What should you do when your feet hurt?
“It is essential to start by taking stock with your doctor,” says Dr. Haen, “because pain can have multiple origins and the risk is that the specialist only mentions the causes related to his field, without a global vision.