Is Leg Edema Dangerous?

Leg edema or excessive fluid in the leg is often found in medical practice. The patient comes with such complaint which disturbs daily activity due to walking difficulties and pain. But, actually is the leg edema dangerous? We need to first understand that leg edema is not caused just by a single disease but there are other possible diagnosis of leg edema.

The possible diagnosis for leg edema includes problems with the heart, liver, kidney, infection, cancer, drugs, or leg vein disorder. The edema itself is caused by excess fluid in the tissue surrounding the vein due to the various problems mentioned above.

Heart problems such as congestive heart disease can cause leg edema because of the problem in blood circulation. The weakened heart causes the blood flow to slow down and forces the fluid to exit the capillary. Therefore, there is excessive fluid in the leg and other organs.

Another diagnosis is kidney failure causing excess fluid to be distributed to the legs and other body parts such as the stomach, lung, etc. It also has other symptoms such as difficulty in breathing.

Liver damage as in cirrhosis also has the complaint of leg edema along with ascites (fluid in the stomach) and also jaundice or yellowish skin and eye as important information.

Another cause of leg edema can be local problems such as venous disorder or elephantiasis. Venous disorder usually is because the vein valve returning to the heart is weakened by age or hereditary condition so the blood flow slowly return to the heart. But since it is local so maybe the condition only appears at one extremity.

Elephantiasis or filariasis is caused by parasitic infection by mosquitos. Besides being swollen, the skin can appear thickened and resembles elephant skin with other complaints such as fever and malaise. Being pregnant or obese can also cause vein insufficiency causing leg edema.

Early management of leg edema uses diuretics which intends to remove the excess fluid from the body. Then we need to address the underlying disease for complete and suitable management. For doctor visit, doctor tele-consultations and home nursing services, please contact Kavacare Support.