Squatting in skinny jeans sent a 35-year-old woman from Adelaide, Australia to the hospital where she was placed on an intravenous drip and remained for four days. Medical examinations revealed the fashion victim suffered from severe weakness in both ankles and both muscle and nerve damage to her lower legs.
Skinny jeans: dangerous fashion choice?
The Australian woman, who remains anonymous, was reportedly helping a relative moving house. The woman spent much of the day squatting as she emptied cupboards. Over the course of the day, she remembers feeling uncomfortable as her feet became more numb.
While taking a break from the work, she took a short walk in a nearby park. However, due to the numbness in her feet, she tripped and fell. Her legs were so weak at that point that she couldn’t stand back up. It took her quite a while to crawl to the side of the road where she hailed a cab and went to the hospital.
Skinny jeans caused muscle and nerve damage
The woman arrived at the Royal Adelaide Hospital with such severe swelling in her calves that doctors had to cut off the skinny jeans. Doctors reported that the woman had developed compartment syndrome in her calves, a painful and serious condition caused by swelling within an enclosed bundle of muscles.
Dr. Thomas Kimber, a consultant neurologist at the hospital, said the tight-fitting jeans had contributed to the condition by creating an intense compression of two major nerves in her calves. Along with the restrictive pants, her squatting activity worsened the condition as blood supply is severely limited within a squatting position sustained for long periods of time.
The woman’s muscle and nerve damage was so extensive that she was placed on an intravenous drip. Although she was unable to even more her toes when she arrived at the hospital, after four days, she had recovered enough to walk on her own and was discharged.
Do Doctors say Skip the Skinny Jeans?
While doctors haven’t officially declared to ditch the hip-hugging denim, they remind those unable to part with the fashion staple to take precautions when wearing any type of restrictive clothing. If possible, opt for suitable sizes that allow your nerves to work properly without being too confined. Always make sure to get adequate blood supply to the extremities when wearing snug clothes. Most importantly, if your legs start feeling numb, set aside the skinny jeans and slip into a nerve-saving, more spacious style.
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