Dignity Health | St. Rose Dominican | Reach | Fall 2017

If you’re livingwith leg pain, you might chalk it up to getting older. But leg pain can be caused by a variety of things, including poor blood circulation. Poor leg circulation isn’t actually a condition itself. It results from other health problems, including obesity, diabetes, atherosclerosis (narrowed arteries), multiple pregnancies, and long-term standing. Poor circulation in the lower body can lead to: ●  ● Tired, heavy, achy legs ●  ● Cramping or calf pain that occurs with walking even short distances ●  ● Varicose veins ●  ● Leg or ankle swelling and skin discoloration ●  ● Leg or foot ulcers Goingwith the flow Two cardiologists at St. Rose Dominican’s Rose de Lima Campus in Henderson are working together to provide comprehensive care for patients with poor leg circulation. When arteries or veins narrow and become blocked, they can use minimally invasive procedures to help get blood flowing well again. If a patient has a blockage in the arteries that take blood from the heart down to the toes, Branavan Umakanthan, DO, FACC, FSCAI, a board-certified interventional cardiologist, performs a balloon angioplasty. This involves inserting a small balloon into the artery to open the blockage. For blockage in a vein that takes blood from the toes back up to the heart, another specialist steps in. Sunil Kalla, MD, FACC, another board-certified interventional cardiologist, performs a different procedure that places a stent in the leg vein so blood can flow freely again. As Dr. Kalla says, “Dr. Umakanthan goes north to south (heart to toes) while I go south to north (toes to heart).” Both procedures take about an hour, and people typically return home within four hours. Somuchbetter! “Most patients see swelling improve by 70 to 80 percent within a fewweeks,” Dr. Kalla says. Their quality of life is significantly improved, too. They are able to walk comfortably again and be more independent, Drs. Kalla and Umakanthan say. For hope and healing. If you have leg pain or other problems, find a doctor who can help at StRoseHospitals.org or by calling 702.616.4900 . Seeing is relieving Dr. Umakanthan and Dr. Kalla have been using advanced technologies to open leg arteries for several years. Dr. Umakanthan is an international-level speaker in this field. Dr. Kalla was also the first physician in the state of Nevada to use intravascular ultrasound-guided pelvic stent placement. It allows the doctor to weave a tiny camera into veins to measure and fix blockage or compression. “It’s like taking a picture of the vein from the inside,” he says. “I can see if there is a blockage and insert a stent immediately.” Branavan Umakanthan, DO (left) and Sunil Kalla, MD (right) Back in circulation St. Rose doctors treat leg pain with same-day surgery