How are venous and arterial leg ulcers distinguished from each other?

Venous ulcers: Venous ulcers occur in the face of longstanding venous disease either reflux or obstruction. This leads to skin discoloration and thickening where an ulcer may occur. Aretrial ulcers relate to impaired blood flow to the foot such that healing is impaired. It is possible to venous ulcers in the face of impaired arterial flow.

Limb loss risk: Arterial leg ulcers carry risk for limb loss and venous ulcer do not. An ultrasound of the arteries in the leg is helpful, easy test to determine the status of the artery supply. Get checked soon as treatment is effective in lowering risk for amputation/limb loss. Good luck.

Throbosis=clot: A thrombosis is a blood clot. The veins are redundant meaning that there are a lot of them draining a certain area. So a venous thrombosis is usually not really important except for discomfort as long as it is in the surface veins. One in the deep veins is a medical emergency. The arteries are less redundant and a clot in an artery can damage the area it supplies and can be very serious.

Ulcers: History physical exam would help to determine the underlying cause