Which symptom best describes intermittent claudication?

Which symptom best describes intermittent claudication?

• A. Pain with activity that subsides with rest
• B. Pain with activity that worsens with rest
• C. Pain with rest in the upper body
• D. Pain only at night

Answer: (A)

Intermittent claudication is pain in the leg that appears with walking or exertion and goes away with rest. This pattern reflects peripheral arterial disease, where muscles don’t get enough blood flow during activity, causing ischemia and pain, which eases once you stop moving and the demand for blood flow drops. The pain is typically triggered by a certain distance or level of effort and often centers in the calves. Other patterns don’t fit this condition: pain that worsens with rest isn’t characteristic of claudication, rest pain in the upper body points to cardiac or other non-ischemic issues, and pain only at night describes rest pain from severe ischemia, not intermittent claudication.

Intermittent claudication is pain in the leg that appears with walking or exertion and goes away with rest. This pattern reflects peripheral arterial disease, where muscles don’t get enough blood flow during activity, causing ischemia and pain, which eases once you stop moving and the demand for blood flow drops. The pain is typically triggered by a certain distance or level of effort and often centers in the calves.

Other patterns don’t fit this condition: pain that worsens with rest isn’t characteristic of claudication, rest pain in the upper body points to cardiac or other non-ischemic issues, and pain only at night describes rest pain from severe ischemia, not intermittent claudication.