Medicines are sometimes used to treat peripheral arterial disease (PAD). Cholesterol-lowering medicines may slow atherosclerosis, the main cause of PAD. You may need additional medicines if you have high blood pressure or diabetes. Both of these conditions can speed up the development of PAD.

Medicines to control pain may also be used when treating PAD. In very rare cases, doctors use anticoagulants, such as warfarin (Coumadin, for example), to help prevent blood clots.

Medication Choices

Medicines that may be used to treat peripheral arterial disease (PAD) include:

• Cilostazol (Pletal) to treat leg pain that comes on with activity (intermittent claudication). This medicine may cause serious side effects.
• Aspirin and other antiplatelet medicines to reduce the risk of heart attack and stroke.
• Statins, to lower cholesterol levels. Lowering cholesterol levels may help prevent the progression of PAD. Studies show that people with intermittent claudication report less leg pain and can walk farther when cholesterol levels are lowered with statins.^{5, 6} For more information on cholesterol-lowering drugs, see to the topic High Cholesterol.
• Medicines to control high blood pressure. For more information on drug treatment for high blood pressure, see the topic High Blood Pressure (Hypertension).
• Drugs to help you stop smoking, such as:
  • Nicotine replacement therapy.
  • Bupropion hydrochloride (Zyban or Wellbutrin).
  • Varenicline (Chantix).
• Anticoagulants. Anticoagulants, such as warfarin (Coumadin) or heparin, are not generally used to treat PAD unless you have a higher chance of forming blood clots.
• Medicines to control diabetes. For more information on drug treatment for these diseases, see the topics:
  • Type 1 Diabetes: Living With the Disease.
  • Type 1 Diabetes: Living With Complications.
  • Type 2 Diabetes: Living With the Disease.
  • Type 2 Diabetes: Living With Complications.

What to Think About

Cilostazol (Pletal) has been shown to increase the time that people who have intermittent claudication can walk before developing leg pain. But side effects such as headache, diarrhea, and heart palpitations are common with this medicine.⁷

Studies show that antiplatelet medicines reduce the number of heart attacks and strokes in people with PAD when compared with a placebo. One study showed that clopidogrel (Plavix) worked better than aspirin in reducing the number of heart attacks and strokes for some people with PAD.⁵ But clopidogrel is not always prescribed, because it is more expensive than aspirin.