Weakness in the legs often indicates simple fatigue, but sometimes this symptom indicates a more serious problem. In combination with dizziness, other pain, trembling, this symptom can indicate completely different pathologies. In what cases should you sound the alarm and rush to the doctor, and when is it enough to just rest?
Are you over 50? Don't ignore weakness in your legs
Common causes of leg weakness
Most often it occurs due to:
- long periods of standing – both static and dynamic;
- improperly selected shoes;
- a diet that causes constant hunger;
- transferred infectious diseases.
Morning weakness in the legs indicates endocrine disorders
Pathological causes
Pathologies in the lower extremities most often occur after 50 years of age, and they can be very serious. Most often, this symptom is diagnosed with:
- phlebeurysm;
- osteochondrosis;
- atherosclerosis of the legs, blockage and narrowing of the lumen of blood vessels;
- pinched nerves;
- blood pressure problems.
Diseases of the joints, in which degenerative processes develop in the tissues, are also not uncommon. It is at this age that treatment for arthrosis or osteoarthritis of the knee and hip joint is most often prescribed.
Weakness in the legs also occurs due to diabetes mellitus
Video: Restless legs syndrome
is not responsible for the accuracy of the information presented in this video clip. Source – JitZdorovo
Sources:
- RESTLESS LEGS SYNDROME: PATHOGENESIS, DIAGNOSIS, TREATMENT. LITERATURE REVIEW. Kovalchuk M.O., Kalinkin A.L. // Neuromuscular diseases. – 2012. – No. 3. – P. 8-19.
- RESTLESS LEGS SYNDROME. Chamsaev M.A., Ivanichev G.A., Boyko S.P., Gainutdinov A.R., Staroseltseva N.G. // Kazan Medical Journal. – 2003. – No. 3. – pp. 186-193.
- MEDICAL REHABILITATION OF PHLEBOLOGICAL PATIENTS. Zhukov B.N., Katorkin S.E., Kostyaev V.E., Kostyaeva E.V. // Bulletin of new medical technologies. – 2009. – No. 4. – pp. 76-79.
- https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/321670.php
- https://ru.scribd.com/document/13164531/Heavy-Leg-Syndrome-Article
For an accurate diagnosis, contact a specialist.
How to recognize the cause
Doctors pay attention to accompanying symptoms and, if necessary, refer for additional examination.
- Simultaneous weakness in the legs and arms occurs with pathologies in the spine, but more often the cause is ordinary muscle fatigue caused by fasting and protein deficiency in the body.
- If the symptom is accompanied by dizziness and recurs frequently, you should immediately consult a doctor. In adolescents, this happens against the background of changes in hormonal levels and transformation of the autonomic nervous system. In adults - due to a head injury, a tumor in the brain, due to stress, severe starvation or pregnancy.
- Fever and leg weakness are obvious symptoms of a cold. Other options are infection, overheating or cooling, poisoning, severe emotional overload, prolonged exposure to ultraviolet radiation. Fever for more than two or three days is a reason to seek help.
- Trembling in the legs occurs when glucose is poorly absorbed - hypoglycemia. The body begins to experience a lack of oxygen, protein and carbohydrate metabolism is disrupted, the level of adrenaline in the blood increases - the nervous system reacts with trembling. Very often the body behaves in exactly the same way during normal anxiety.
- Weakness in the legs combined with headache may indicate acute chemical poisoning, in particular phosphorus-containing substances.
Is weakness accompanied by numbness in your legs? This is a very dangerous symptom
Treatment
Help before diagnosis
To get rid of heaviness in the legs, patients are advised to choose comfortable shoes and use orthopedic insoles. If you need to spend the whole day in a standing position (hairdressers, salespeople, cooks), you need to wear compression stockings that help reduce venous stagnation. It is necessary to maintain body weight within normal limits so as not to create additional stress on the feet.
To improve peripheral blood circulation and increase the tone of venous vessels, exercise (swimming, cycling) is useful. The amount of strength and static training, which increases the deposition of blood in the veins, should be reduced. Lifestyle changes play an important role: increasing daily activity, frequent walking.
Conservative therapy
Treatment of vein diseases in clinical phlebology begins with medications: taking antiplatelet agents, phlebotonics, applying ointments and creams to areas of the skin with trophic lesions. B vitamins and desensitizing drugs are indicated as general tonic agents. In rare cases, the treatment regimen is enhanced with corticosteroid hormones.
Therapy is supplemented with elastic compression (bandages, stockings) to maintain venous vessels in tone and reduce heaviness in the legs. For the treatment of varicose veins, compression sclerotherapy is widely practiced - the injection of drugs into the veins that cause gluing of the vascular walls and reduce venous stagnation. After the manipulation, pain and swelling of the legs are eliminated.
To reduce edema in cardiac and renal pathologies, diuretics are used. With constant use of the medicine, excess fluid is removed, shortness of breath and heaviness in the legs are eliminated. For heart failure, beta blockers, glycosides and other drugs are additionally prescribed to improve the strength of myocardial contractions.
Surgery
For varicose veins, several types of surgical interventions are performed:
- minimally invasive (photocoagulation, laser removal of spider veins, radiofrequency coagulation);
- classical (phlebectomy, Troyanov-Tredelenburg operation).
For patients with lymphedema, lymphovenous shunting, tunneling, and autotransplantation of the tissue lymphoid complex are recommended.
Flat feet are treated by experienced orthopedic traumatologists. In the stage of planovalgus foot, resection of protruding areas of bones, tendon transplantation, and removal of heel spurs are performed. For patients with severe transverse flatfoot, resection of hallux valgus followed by plastic surgery of the articular capsule is indicated.
When can leg weakness be dangerous?
If the symptom is accompanied by a feeling of “woolly legs” and this does not occur in extreme heat, not from overwork or starvation, we can assume more serious causes - a pre-heart attack and pre-stroke condition. In parallel with the weak legs, heart pain or headache appears, and the fingers go numb. Here the minutes are counting.
Sometimes the cause of weakness in the legs is anemia - a deficiency of vitamin B12. This symptom is especially dangerous in older age. How to proceed in this case?
If weakness is accompanied by pain
This is exactly the case when treatment for arthrosis of the knee, ankle or hip joint may be necessary. Pain syndrome can be eliminated by intra-articular injections of Noltrex, a synovial fluid substitute, provided that the orthopedist confirms the diagnosis.
If, in addition to pain, the patient complains of cramps, tingling and numbness, the skin on the legs turns blue or pale, other diseases are possible, for example, impaired blood circulation due to varicose veins or peripheral vascular disease. The same symptoms are characteristic of arthritis, bursitis, gout, pinched nerves due to radiculitis of the lumbosacral region, and even flat feet.
Weakness in the legs and pain occur with closed injuries of the lower extremities in athletes
The most dangerous symptom
You should sound the alarm if weakness manifests itself not in both, but only in one leg, especially if one arm on the same side also goes numb. Very often this indicates a pre-stroke condition, when a vessel in the brain becomes blocked. You must call a doctor immediately.
Weakness in the left leg and loss or decrease in sensation indicate neurological pathology. In this case, you should also not hesitate, even if the symptoms are minor. Over time, the disease may develop into a tumor, disorders of the nervous system will worsen and lead to complications.
Weakness in one leg is a very alarming and dangerous symptom.
If you feel weakness in your legs that does not go away after rest and returns regularly, if it is also accompanied by pain or other symptoms of illness, do not attribute it to fatigue. The body signals you about problems that can be very serious. Start with a therapist, who will refer you to an orthopedist or neurologist and prescribe an examination.
If the reason is fatigue, an integrated approach is needed. It is necessary to establish a daily routine so that it harmoniously combines physical activity and rest. It is very important to eat well and spend more time in the fresh air. Make sure you wear good, season-appropriate shoes that don’t compress your limbs. But even if fatigue does not go away with such measures, consult a specialist.
Preventing the development of heavy leg syndrome
food
Useful foods to prevent heavy leg syndrome
If you have the first signs of varicose veins, correct lifestyle and nutritional adjustments, combined with adherence to medical recommendations, will help return your legs to normal health. To achieve this, follow a few simple rules:
- Avoid wearing high heels frequently.
- It is recommended to make it a rule to do feasible physical exercises every day: stand on your toes, do “bicycle” and “scissors”, go swimming. At the same time, strength exercises with large weights, squats and jumps should be abandoned.
- If you are forced to spend a long time in a static position (for example, during a long air flight), periodically strain your calf muscles and lift your heels and toes off the floor. Literally a few of these mini-exercises can improve blood flow in the veins of the legs.
- Adjust your daily diet so that it contains foods rich in coarse plant fibers: these can be fresh vegetables, herbs, and fruits.
- Don't forget about your drinking regime: you need to drink at least 2 liters of clean water every day (this does not include tea, juices, broths).
- Avoid drinking alcohol, strong coffee, smoked and salty foods, trans fats, baked goods and bread, milk and dairy products, and sugar. Instead of these products, include vegetables, fruits and berries, legumes, sea fish and seafood, vegetable oils, nuts and seeds in your diet.
- Normaven® can be used to prevent the development of heavy leg syndrome. For example, Normaven® Foot Tonic is a great help for tired feet. The product has a beneficial effect on the blood vessels of the lower extremities, helping to cope with the feeling of heaviness and fullness that appears at the end of the day or during prolonged sitting. The toner contains natural ingredients: extracts of chestnut, witch hazel, butcher's broom, as well as menthol and panthenol. Highly qualified specialists, employees of the pharmaceutical company VERTEX, worked on the development of the product. Leg tonic Normaven® has a full package of relevant documents and certificates and is recommended for use in the initial stages of varicose veins development.