Smoking and Peripheral Vascular Disease in the Legs
Key takeaways
Health Canada says smoking can cause blockages in the legs known as peripheral vascular disease, and that smokers are about three times more likely to get it. Surgery for it is three times more likely to fail in people who keep smoking, and smokers with diabetes are up to four times more likely to lose a limb.
Health Canada says smoking can cause blockages in the legs known as peripheral vascular disease, often shortened to PVD, and that smokers are about three times more likely to get it. This page covers the leg-circulation figures the department publishes. It summarizes Health Canada information and is not medical advice.
What is peripheral vascular disease?
In the sources we reviewed, Health Canada describes PVD only as blockages in the legs and lists it with heart attacks, angina and strokes among the conditions smoking can cause. We do not add a medical definition or a list of symptoms here, because the department’s wording is all we can attribute. A doctor can explain what it means for an individual.
How much does smoking raise the risk?
Health Canada states that smokers are about three times more likely to get peripheral vascular disease. That is a comparison between groups of people, so it cannot predict what will happen to any one person.
What about surgery and limb loss?
Two further figures come from the same Health Canada page. Surgery for PVD is three times more likely to fail in people who keep smoking. Smokers with diabetes are up to four times more likely to lose a limb.
The diabetes figure links this page to smoking and diabetes, which covers insulin and other complications. The wider heart and vessel picture is in smoking and heart disease.
What does quitting change?
The surgery figure compares outcomes for people who keep smoking. We found no Health Canada figure on how much quitting lowers PVD risk, so we do not give one. For the general timeline of benefits the department publishes, see what happens when you quit smoking.
What we could not confirm
We could not confirm the study behind each figure, the age groups it covers, or the risk for people who smoked in the past. For other effects on the body, see cigarette side effects. Anyone with leg pain, cold or discoloured legs, or sores that heal slowly should speak to a doctor, nurse practitioner or pharmacist, or call 811 where it is available.
Health information is general and educational. It does not replace advice from a doctor, pharmacist or nurse. Read the full disclaimer.
Frequently asked questions
Does smoking cause blocked arteries in the legs?
Health Canada says smoking can cause blockages in the legs known as peripheral vascular disease, and that smokers are about three times more likely to get it.
Does smoking affect surgery for peripheral vascular disease?
Health Canada says surgery for peripheral vascular disease is three times more likely to fail in people who keep smoking.
Can smoking lead to losing a limb?
Health Canada says smokers with diabetes are up to four times more likely to lose a limb. It gives no matching figure for smokers without diabetes in the pages we reviewed.
Sources
- Smoking and your body — Health Canada. Accessed October 31, 2026.
- Tobacco and Peripheral Vascular Disease — Health Canada. Accessed October 31, 2026.