The article presents longitudinal research into peculiarity and dynamics of health behaviours in patients suffering from atheromatosis of he lower limb arteries. The aim of the research was to show how the onset of the disease influenced patients to change their health behaviours. The survey was conducted in 2002-2003 and it included 114 patients of the Outpatient Vascular Clinic at Biziel Hospital in Bydgoszcz and a homogeneous group of 114 healthy people. The analysis shows that the level of health behaviours, considered to be the main cause of the disease, varies according to the health of surveyed people. The direction of changes (improvement in health behaviours) suggests that the onset of the disease is a traumatic event which leads to these changes. The dynamics of changes in health behaviours shows that the highest level of improper health behaviours is usually observed before the onset of the disease and then health behaviours improve. However, the dynamics slows down as the disease progresses. Additionally, patients tend to declare better health behaviours in the future but these declarations are not fulfilled unless patients are active or exposed to stress. The results of the research show that it is necessary to make use of the behaviour changes caused by traumatic event. They also show the need for an interactive prophylactic programme which will prolong the tendency towards changes in pro-health behaviour.