Varicose veins or in ordinary people, varicose veins are irreversible and persistent elongation and expansion of veins, mainly in the lower extremities, as well as the formation of certain "nodules" due to pathology in the vein walls or due to a genetic defect (inadequacy of their valves).
Today, varicose veins are a very common disease. It affects every tenth man and every third woman. The more a person leads a sedentary, inactive lifestyle, the more he is susceptible to this disease.
USA, France, UK - are the leading countries in the incidence of varicose veins (more than 30% of the population on average).
The causes of varicose veins
This utility value is shown with an increase in venous pressure. It is generally accepted that varicose veins are exclusively at the lower end, but there are varicose veins in the esophagus, stomach, testicles or varicose veins in the small pelvis.
The latter is, incidentally, one of the causes of a fairly common disease such as hemorrhoids.
The main reasons for the development of varicose veins include:
- Gender: Varicose veins are often provoked in female representatives by taking various hormonal drugs or pregnancy.
- Heredity
- Increased venous pressure, including due to weight problems, a sedentary sedentary lifestyle.
The above causes contribute to both expansion of the veins and disruption of the usual normal function of the venous valves.
Stages of the disease
The following stages of varicose veins are distinguished:
- Initial- it is characterized by pain in the legs, swelling and heaviness. Prevention of the disease at this stage is, after all, better suited.
- First stagegnarled veins, spider veins, which can be seen through the skin, are also added to the above symptoms. Burning sensation in the area of feet and calves is often possible.
- Second phase- the number of varicose veins and stars rises sharply and becomes more visible. The pain becomes unbearable, the legs drain heavily.
- Third stage- here the skin of the leg is directly affected. It becomes cracked, lifeless and dry. In addition, it is possible to change the pigmentation and structure of the skin on the legs. Venous nodules begin to take a convex shape.
What happens to varicose veins?
One of the very first symptoms of varicose veins is frequent swelling of the legs, distension and heaviness in the calves when they sit for a long time.
Also no less characteristic of varicose veins is the reduction or disappearance of these symptoms after a night's rest or walks.
If you do not start treatment on time, the following symptoms will appear - explosive pain in the doctors, cramps in the calf muscles, a feeling of warmth in the legs.
Also on the legs you can see red-blue vascular "stars", saphenous veins dilate and you can see intradermal dark blue veins.
With advanced varicose veins, thrombophlebitis (inflammation of the dilated veins with the formation of blood clots in them), eczema in the affected areas or trophic ulcers can develop.
To eliminate the risk of manifestation of varicose veins it is necessary to get rid of the main causes of its occurrence and external factors: smoking, alcohol, unhealthy diet.
Varicose veins in the lower extremities develop from a lack of high-fiber foods in the diet. It is an intestinal cleanser that removes waste, pus, toxins and radionuclides from the body.
Forms of varicose veins
There are the following types (forms) of varicose veins at the lower end:
- Localized venous lesion with defective discharge through communicative or pathological veins.
- Localized lesion of intradermal or subcutaneous vessels without reflux.
- Widespread venous involvement with defective deep vein blood flow.
- Widespread lesion of the veins with defective blood flow through the communicative veins.
In addition, separately isolated, such a form as the reticular form of varicose veins. It is a kind of common varicose veins, with it there is an enlargement of thin intracutaneous veins
Diagnostics
When you observe the first symptoms, immediately contact a specialist who deals with venous diseases - a phlebologist.
Success with the treatment of varicose veins in the legs largely depends on when you started the treatment. The earlier you see a doctor, the lower the risk of complications.
After the first examination, your doctor will prescribe an instrumental examination, usually a Doppler ultrasound.
It happens that radiopaque and radionuclide methods are used if the need arises.
With these methods, special substances are injected into the bloodstream, and then their distribution through the blood vessels is examined.
How to treat varicose veins
Varicose veins can be treated with 3 methods:
- Sclerotherapy.
- Performs a surgical operation on the varicose veins.
- Medicine (conservative treatment).
In addition to the above methods, the complex uses medical knit and physiotherapy exercises.
Below we will take a closer look at each of the 3 methods.
Sclerotherapy
Scleteropia is a painless, non-surgical and most importantly high quality and effective method of treating varicose veins. This is a pretty young way to treat varicose veins compared to others.
One of the main advantages of sclerotherapy is that the treatment does not require hospitalization, that is, that it is performed on an outpatient basis and that it in no way affects the patient's usual rhythm in life.
The essence of the method lies in the fact that a special sclerosing drug is carefully injected into the "sick" vein, causing a kind of "gluing" of the veins.
At the end of the procedure, a bandage is applied, which must be worn for a week. During this time, the vein becomes overgrown, after which it disappears and the blood flow is restored.
Unfortunately, not all types of varicose veins can be treated with this method. If the patient needs surgery, sclerotherapy will not only not help in this case, but can also cause a number of complications and possibly even deterioration.
For example, there is a classification of varicose veins by sear, where varicose veins are divided into degrees, and this method can only treat varicose veins of 1st degree.
As for the consequences of sclerotherapy, it is the preservation of small bruises for a short period and a slight pigmentation of the "sick" veins.
This method is performed by a professional doctor and guarantees a lasting result: the dilated veins "close" and the blood flow never returns through them.
Operation
Surgical treatment for varicose veins or laser surgery for varicose veins. Currently, this method is one of the most important. First, there are a number of contraindications:
- During pregnancy or women who have just given birth, it is recommended to wait at least 5 weeks, as in many cases varicose veins have formed during pregnancy, without any intervention.
- If you only worry about the aesthetic side of the problem and there are no other symptoms (inflammation of the veins, pain).
- A surgical method of treating varicose veins is only indicated if others do not make sense or will not give results.
Treatment of varicose veins with a surgical method is usually performed on an outpatient basis without hospitalization of the patient.
There are 3 methods for surgical treatment of varicose veins - ligation, stripping and microflebectomy.
- Ligation- This is a kind of varicose veins. Usually this method is used in combination with others, for example, it serves as an addition to stripping or phlebectomy.
- Stripping- a surgical method of treating varicose veins, in which the "sick" vein is removed using a thin small probe.
- Microflebectomy- the essence lies in the removal of varicose veins through a puncture, which is made in the skin.
Medical treatment method
Drug therapy is an equally important component in the treatment of varicose veins. Competently selected drugs not only help to remove the fairly basic manifestations of varicose veins, but also to reduce the risk of complications.
Most of these drugs help relieve swelling and pain syndromes, improve blood flow and so on.
These medicines help in the following:
- Improve lymphatic drainage function.
- Increase the general venous tone.
- Improve the microcirculation of hemorheological disorders.
It should be noted that the use of these drugs, like all others, should be carried out only after a thorough examination and as prescribed by a doctor.
Treatment with folk medicine for varicose veins
In addition to traditional medicine, there are also recipes from the first aid kit "folk music":
- Take a few cloves of garlic and chop it finely. Note that only garlic with white peels is used! Then stir it with two tablespoons of butter. We apply the resulting gruel on the "sore" veins for the night, on top of baking paper, fasten with a tight bandage and wrap it with a warm scarf. In the morning, after a shower, we dress in something warm.
- Hop infusion is an equally effective folk remedy for varicose veins. Take hop cones (be sure to dry) and pour 1 glass of boiling water. Let it brew for an hour, then take the infusion half an hour before meals in a glass.
And remember varicose veins are not a phrase, it is still possible and necessary to be treated, and the sooner you consult a specialist, the easier and more effective the treatment itself will be.
Be healthy!