Question

A nurse is caring for a client with peripheral vascular disease (PVD) who presents to the primary care clinic complaining of a burning pain in the legs, which occurs at night in bed. What is the best response from the nurse?

1) This is known as intermittent claudication. Wearing compression socks to bed may help your pain.
2) This known as intermittent claudication. Elevating your legs may help your pain.
3) This is known as rest pain. Elevating your legs may help your pain.
4) This is known as rest pain. Dangling your legs off your bed may help your pain.

Answer 1

Rest pain in peripheral vascular disease (PVD) occurs during rest, unlike intermittent claudication which occurs during exercise. For rest pain, dangling the legs off the bed may alleviate the symptoms by improving circulation.

Step-by-step explanation:

A client with peripheral vascular disease (PVD) who experiences burning pain in the legs during rest, particularly at night, is more likely suffering from rest pain rather than intermittent claudication. Intermittent claudication typically involves muscle pain on exercise which resolves with rest, not pain that specifically occurs at rest or during the night. Therefore, the correct answer to the question is that this type of pain is known as rest pain and one possible relief measure would be to dangle the legs off the bed to encourage blood flow. This takes advantage of gravity to assist in improving circulation. While compression stockings can be beneficial in some circulatory issues, they are not indicated for rest pain associated with PVD.