Doctors have warned that wearing skinny jeans can lead to muscle and nerve damages.

The Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery and Psychiatry has described a case in which a 35-year-old woman had to be cut out of a pair after her calves swelled and ballooned in size.

The woman had spent hours squatting to empty cupboards for a house move in Australia. By evening, her feet were numb and she found it hard to walk. After a while, she began to have difficulty walking and lost sensation in her legs.

She fell and struggled to get up again. She was found lying on the ground hours later and was taken to Royal Adelaide Hospital where she had to be cut out of the jeans. Doctors found that her muscles and nerves were damaged.

Doctors believe the woman developed a condition called compartment syndrome, made worse by her skinny jeans. Compartment syndrome is a condition caused by increased pressure within a confined body space and resulting in nerve compression.

The condition caused the woman to trip and fall and, unable to get up, she then spent several hours lying on the ground.

On examination at the Royal Adelaide Hospital, her lower legs were severely swollen.

Although her feet were warm and had enough blood supplying them, her muscles were weak and she had lost some feeling.

As the pressure had built in her lower legs, her muscles and nerves became damaged.

She was put on an intravenous drip and after four days was able to walk unaided.

Other medics have reported a number of cases where patients have developed tingly, numb thighs from wearing the figure-hugging low-cut denim trousers – although the chance of it happening is still slim for most people.

Doctors have also previously warned against wearing high heels with skinny jeans, as wearing the shoes tilts the wearer’s pelvis and increases pressure against the jeans, risking nerve damage.