This leg condition overlooked in women can raise heart attack, stroke risk

When you think of cardiovascular disease, you might envision plaque — a sticky, waxy substance that builds up in the arteries leading to the heart, where it can cause a heart attack. But arteries run throughout the body, and plaque can accumulate anywhere along this network. When this happens in the legs, it can cause peripheral artery disease (PAD), a condition in which blood flow is restricted to the limbs.