Poor circulation in hands and feet. How to treat this condition ?
Patient: DEAR DOCTOR, I HAVE BEEN SUFFERING FROM POOR CIRCULATION IN THE HANDS AND FEET FOR THE LAST 10 YEARS. I BELIEVE IT IS CAUSING POOR PERFUSION TO THE BRAIN AND IS MAKING IT HARDER FOR ME TO PROCESS INFORMATION, THINK AND REMEMBER. ONE PROFESSIONAL I SAW SAID IF IT S NOT TREATED IT CAN LEAD TO DEPRESSION AND EARLY DEMENTIA . MY FATHER HAS HAD HEART BYPASS SURGERY BECAUSE OF NARROW AND CLOGGED ARTERIES AND IS NOW SUFFERING BADLY WITH MEMORY LOSS AND OTHER SYMPTOMS OF DEMENTIA. COULD MY BRAIN BECOME DAMAGED WITH THIS PROBLEM TO THE POINT I MAY DEVELOP DEMENTIA? IF SO, WHAT CAN I DO TO TREAT THIS CONDITION. I HAVE RECENTLY HAD AN MRI BECAUSE A CT SCAN SHOWED ENLARGED 1ST AND THIRD VENTRICLES WHICH ARE OUT OF PROPORTION TO THE CORTICAL SULCI. I AM A FORTY YEAR OLD FEMALE AND THIS IS QUITE DISTRESSING FOR ME. Doctor: Hi,Thank you for posting your query.First of all, you should stop worrying about the future risk of dementia. Though Alzheimer's disease (AD) can be familial, this risk is very low, and less than 10% of AD cases are familial.Poor blood flow to brain can lead to strokes and dementia. So, you should get screened for high BP, sugars, and cholestol, which are the risk factors for brain strokes. If any of them are abnormal, you should get them treated.Best wishes,Dr Sudhir Kumar MD DM (Neurology)Senior Consultant Neurologist