High cholesterol often causes no symptoms.
REPUBLIKA.CO.ID, JAKARTA — High cholesterol often has no symptoms, such as high blood pressure. However, some changes in the feet can provide clues about the presence of cholesterol height.
One of these changes is swelling in the leg area. This swelling can occur in the knuckles, knees, or Achilles tendons or behind the ankles.
However, this swelling in the leg area is only associated with a condition called familial hypercholesterolemia. Familial hypercholesterolemia is a high cholesterol caused by heredity. Although this condition has been present since birth, symptoms or problems related to high cholesterol may appear later in life.
People who suffer familial hypercholesterolemia have a higher risk of heart disease. In addition, familial hypercholesterolemia can also increase the risk of an early heart attack.
High cholesterol can also trigger peripheral arterial disease (PAD). When PAD has occurred, some of the symptoms can also be seen in the leg area because this condition causes blood flow to the legs to be blocked.
Symptoms of PAD in the legs usually occur on both sides at the same time. Some of these symptoms are loss of hair on the feet, brittle or slowly growing toenails, sores that don’t heal on the feet, discoloration of the feet, usually turning pale or bluish, and the skin on the feet looking shiny.
