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A 58-year-old man comes to the emergency department due to sudden onset of severe right leg pain several hours ago; the leg has since become numb.  He has never had similar symptoms and has no history of trauma, fever, or chills.  The patient recently had an acute anterior wall myocardial infarction that resulted in cardiogenic shock; he is undergoing cardiac rehabilitation.  Temperature is 36.7 C (98.1 F), blood pressure is 120/70 mm Hg, pulse is 90/min and regular, and respirations are 16/min.  Cardiopulmonary examination is unremarkable.  Compared with the left leg, the right leg appears pale and is cool to the touch.  In the right lower extremity, the popliteal pulse is normal, but more distal pulses are not palpable.  Pulses in the other extremities are normal.  Neurologic examination shows loss of sensation over the dorsum of the right foot and mild weakness with dorsiflexion.  Which of the following is the most likely cause of this patient's symptoms?

Question

A 58-year-old man comes to the emergency department due to sudden onset of severe right leg pain several hours ago; the leg has since become numb.  He has never had similar symptoms and has no history of trauma, fever, or chills.  The patient recently had an acute anterior wall myocardial infarction that resulted in cardiogenic shock; he is undergoing cardiac rehabilitation.  Temperature is 36.7 C (98.1 F), blood pressure is 120/70 mm Hg, pulse is 90/min and regular, and respirations are 16/min.  Cardiopulmonary examination is unremarkable.  Compared with the left leg, the right leg appears pale and is cool to the touch.  In the right lower extremity, the popliteal pulse is normal, but more distal pulses are not palpable.  Pulses in the other extremities are normal.  Neurologic examination shows loss of sensation over the dorsum of the right foot and mild weakness with dorsiflexion.  Which of the following is the most likely cause of this patient's symptoms?

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Solution

This patient's sudden onset of severe leg pain, pallor, poikilothermia (coolness), pulselessness, and paresthesias (numbness) are consistent with acute arterial occlusion. The most common causes of acute arterial occlusion are embolism and thrombosis. Given this patient's recent myocardial infarction (MI), the most likely cause is embolism. Mural thrombi often form on the ventricular wall after an MI, especially with anterior wall MIs, which involve a larger surface area. These thrombi can embolize and occlude the arteries of the lower extremities. The popliteal artery is a common site of embolization due to its size and location. The normal popliteal pulse and absent distal pulses in this patient suggest that the embolus is lodged distal to the popliteal artery.

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