New surgery for treating leg artery disease 'that's as painful as a heart attack'

People with painful artery disease in their legs can now be helped by a breakthrough surgery that widens their blood vessels.

The first such operation in Europe took place last week at the Freeman Hospital in Newcastle, and more NHS hospitals are now set to offer the procedure.

The surgery went well, said James McCaslin, a vascular surgeon at Newcastle Hospitals, who led the operation. “As far as we know at this stage, everything is looking good.”

Artery disease in the legs happens when the limb’s major blood vessels constrict, like they can in the heart. They become lined with fatty plaques, a process known as atherosclerosis.

Leg artery disease affects a fifth of people over 60, and a third of these will get calf pain when walking as a result.