Varicose Veins
Varicose Veins
Varicose veins are enlarged and gnarled veins. Any vein can become a varicose vein, but it most commonly affects the veins in your legs and feet. The reason for this is that you stand and walk upright a great deal, and this increases the pressure on your lower body veins.
Varicose veins are largely a cosmetic concern for many people. But for some others, varicose veins can signal that you are at risk for other circulatory problems. And they can also cause discomfort and pain for others. Sometimes people with varicose veins eventually develop other problems that are more serious. Treatment for varicose veins can involve some care at home, and there are some procedures that your doctor may use to remove or close the veins.
The arteries that carry your blood from your heart transport them to your body’s tissues. Veins facilitate the return of the blood from the rest of your body back to your heart, so that it can be recirculated. The veins in your leg have to work against gravity to return the blood to your heart. The pumps are effectively muscle contractions in your lower legs. The elasticity of the vein walls helps to return the blood back to your heart. There are tiny valves within your veins that open as the blood flows back toward your heart, and then close to keep your blood from going backward, where gravity would send it.
There are various causes of varicose veins, and one is obviously age. As you age, the veins tend to lose their elasticity, which causes them to stretch. The venous valves can weaken, and allow blood that should be headed toward your heart to flow backward. Then the blood pools within your veins, causing them to become enlarged and varicose. They appear blue because the blood within them is de-oxygenated blood, which was on its way to recirculate in the lungs.
Some women develop varicose veins when they are pregnant. When you are pregnant, you have a higher blood volume in your body, but less flow from your legs going into your pelvis. This gives more blood to the developing fetus, but it can cause your leg veins to enlarge.
In order to diagnose your varicose veins, your physician will start with a physical examination, which will include checking your legs while you stand, to find the swelling. You may also be asked to describe the aching and pain in your legs. Your doctor may ask for an ultrasound to be done, to check the valves in your veins, and make sure you don’t have a blood clot.
Treatment usually won’t involve a stay in the hospital or a difficult recovery. Varicose veins can normally be treated as an outpatient procedure. You can also do exercise, lose excess weight, elevate your legs and don’t spend long time periods sitting or standing. This can help ease your pain and prevent your varicose veins from worsening.
Wearing compression hose can help you, too. This is generally the first method of treatment used before you move on to others. Compression hose are worn all day, and they keep a steady pressure on your legs, which helps your muscles move the blood more efficiently. Your physician will tell you what degree of compression he or she wants you to use.
Treatments to be considered if compression stockings don’t help include sclerotherapy, where a solution will be injected into your veins to scar and close them. Laser surgeries use new technology to close off varicose veins that are smaller, as well as spider veins.
In deciding which treatment options to choose, be a well-informed consumer. Ask your physician before using any “designer” techniques, that may not do what they claim to.
The treatments used currently for varicose veins are generally effective. It is possible to have varicose veins recur, and there isn’t a way to prevent them completely. Improving your muscle tone and circulation can help reduce the risk of having the veins develop or of getting more varicose veins.
