intermittent claudication

noun

: cramping pain and weakness in the buttocks and legs and especially the calves that comes on when walking and disappears after rest and that is usually associated with inadequate blood supply to the muscles (as in atherosclerosis)

Aerobic exercise lowers blood pressure in people with hypertension, and it improves peripheral circulation in people who develop cramping leg pains when they walk—a condition called intermittent claudication.

—Jane E. Brody

Examples of intermittent claudication in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

For many patients with peripheral artery disease, an initial symptom is pain when walking or exercising, which is also known as intermittent claudication. —Annie Waldman, ProPublica, 12 Dec. 2023

Just last month, the European Society for Vascular Surgery published its clinical practice guidelines on treating patients with asymptomatic peripheral artery disease and intermittent claudication, recommending conservative care for most of these patients. —Annie Waldman, ProPublica, 12 Dec. 2023

Word History

First Known Use

1868, in the meaning defined above

Medical Definition

intermittent claudication

noun

: cramping pain and weakness in the buttocks and legs and especially the calves that comes on when walking and disappears after rest and that is usually associated with inadequate blood supply to the muscles (as in peripheral arterial disease or Buerger's disease)