Aim of the study

The analysis of disorders occurring in everyday activities of patients with chronic ischaemia of the lower extremities.

Material and methods

The studies were carried out among inpatients of the Department of General and Vascular Surgery of the Provincial Hospital in Bielsko-Biała from April to October, 2017. The studies were conducted using the diagnostic poll method with the help of the following tools: the Oswestry Disability Index (ODI) survey questionnaire and our own survey questionnaire. The study results were subjected to statistical analysis, and the adopted level of significance was p < 0.05.

Results

The patients reported greatest difficulties in the scope of everyday activities, i.e. walking and standing, travelling, sex life, social life, and lifting heavy items. The activities that were least troublesome for them were sitting, personal care, and sleeping. The greatest disorders in everyday activities and in the psychosocial domain referred to the group with rest pain and gangrene, and the smallest disorders, in turn, referred to the group without pain or with pain occurring after walking a distance of over 200 metres. Persons smoking a higher number of cigarettes had greater pain ailments, and they experienced greater limitations in sleeping. The surveyed subjects smoking for a longer time experienced pain more intensively and had greater limitations related to sleep and sexual activity.

Conclusions

Along with the progression of the disease, pain ailments intensified and dysfunctions in the scope of everyday activities appeared. Smoking cigarettes impacted the intensification of pain ailments and caused greater limitations in sleeping and in sexual activity.