Ask the Expert

Get answers to your important health-related questions with the help of UMass Memorial Medical Center experts. Our free Ask the Expert Q&A sessions connect you with UMass Memorial Medical Center experts including physicians, physician assistants and nurse practitioners (including nurse navigators) who can answer questions on a wide variety of health-related topics.

This feature is provided for informational purposes only. The answers you receive from UMass Memorial Medical Center experts are not intended to be a substitute for individual medical advice in diagnosing or treating a health problem. Please note that experts do not provide diagnosis, prescriptions or referrals via email. 

Please consult with your physician about your specific health care concerns.

Ask the Vascular Expert
Topic: Peripheral Artery Disease
Expert: Louis Messina, MD, is chief of vascular and endovascular surgery at UMass Memorial and professor of surgery at UMass Medical School. 

Dr. Messina is a Summa Cum Laude graduate of the State University of New York, Downstate Medical Center in Brooklyn. He completed both his surgical residency and vascular surgery fellowship at the University of California, San Francisco, and completed a two-year research fellowship at the Cardiovascular Research Institute in San Francisco. 

Dr. Messina is the associate editor of the Journal of Vascular Surgery and the associate editor of Rutherford’s Vascular Surgery. His clinical interests include carotid and lower extremity arterial occlusive disease.

Peripheral artery disease (PAD) is a common circulatory problem in which narrowed arteries reduce blood flow to your limbs. 

When you develop PAD, your extremities — usually your legs — don't receive enough blood flow to keep up with demand. This causes symptoms like leg pain when walking. This condition can also reduce blood flow to your heart and brain, as well as your legs.

Have a question about PAD, vascular or endovascular surgery? Submit your question for Dr. Messina today!

Answers will be posted in our Ask the Expert Q&A Forum on Facebook within 48 hours.


Ask the Expert Archives

Ask the Experts: Breast Cancer/Mammography
with Robert Quinlan, MD, director of the Comprehensive Breast Center at UMass Memorial Medical Center, and Carolynn DeBenedectis, MD, attending radiologist – breast imaging at UMass Memorial Medical Center.

Ask the Expert: Pancreatic Cancer/ Surgical Oncology with Jennifer LaFemina, MD, surgical oncologist at UMass Memorial Medical Center and assistant professor of surgery at University of Massachusetts Medical School. 

Ask the Expert: West Nile Virus & EEE
with Sharone Green, MD, infectious disease specialist at UMass Memorial Medical Center and associate professor of medicine at the University of Massachusetts Medical School.

Ask the Expert: High Blood Pressure
with Robert Phillips, MD, PhD, director of the UMass Memorial Health Care Heart and Vascular Center of Excellence and professor of medicine and professor of clinical and population health research at the University of Massachusetts Medical School.

Ask the Expert: Cancer Surgery
with Laura Lambert, MD, surgical oncologist at UMass Memorial Health Care Cancer Center of Excellence and director of the Peritoneal Carcinomatosis Center.

Ask the Expert: Lupus
with Nancy Liu, MD, rheumatologist at UMass Memorial Medical Center and clinical associate professor of medicine at the University of Massachusetts Medical School.

Ask the Expert: Pregnancy  
with Reshma Parikh, MD, high-risk obstetrician at UMass Memorial Medical Center and assistant professor of obstetrics and gynecology at the University of Massachusetts Medical School.

Ask the Cardiologist: Women's Heart Health

with Cynthia Ennis, DO, director of the Women's Heart Health program, a multidisciplinary clinic that is focused on providing unique cardiology care for the women of central Massachusetts.

Ask the Expert: Colorectal Cancer
with Justin Maykel, MDchief of colon and rectal surgery at UMass Memorial Medical Center and assistant professor of surgery at University of Massachusetts Medical School.

Ask the Expert: Organ Donation
with Janice Adams, nurse practitioner in the Department of Anesthesiology at UMass Memorial Medical Center and the in-house coordinator for New England Organ Bank.  

Ask the Orthopedic Surgeon: Winter Sports Injuries with
Nicola DeAngelis, MD, orthopedic surgeon at UMass Memorial Medical Center and an assistant professor of orthopedics and physical rehabilitation at the University of Massachusetts Medical School.

Ask the Expert: Preventative Care and Wellness with
Stephanie Carter- Henry, MD, MS, family medicine physician at Hahnemann Family Health Center in Worcester and assistant professor of family medicine and community health at the University of Massachusetts Medical School.

Ask the Expert: Joint Replacement and Orthopedic Surgery with David Ayers, MD, chair of orthopedics and physical rehabilitation at UMass Memorial Medical Center and the University of Massachusetts Medical School. 

Ask the Expert: Cosmetic Surgery and Skin Care with Raymond Dunn, MD, chief of plastic and reconstructive rurgery at UMass Memorial Medical Center and the University of Massachusetts Medical School.

Ask the Expert: Weight Loss, Obesity and Weight Center Programs with Mitch Gitkind, MD, medical director of the UMass Memorial Weight Center; clinical associate professor of medicine and surgery at the University of Massachusetts Medical School.

Ask the Expert: Lung Cancer: Early diagnosis, different stages, new advances & treatment options with
Syed Quadri, MD, thoracic surgeon at UMass Memorial Medical Center and assistant professor of surgery at the University of Massachusetts Medical School

Ask the Expert: Flu Prevention & Flu Shots with
Richard Ellison, MD, hospital epidemiologist at UMass Memorial Medical Center 

Ask the Expert: Prostate Cancer: Screenings, Early Detection, Risk Factors & Treatment with
Michael Blute, MD, director of the UMass Memorial Cancer Center of Excellence and interim chief of the division of urology, UMass Memorial Medical Center