Varicose veins or in ordinary people, varicose veins are irreversible and continuous extension and expansion of veins, mainly of the lower extremities, as well as the formation of certain "nodes" as a result of venous wall pathology or due toa genetic defect (insufficiency 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 susceptible he is to this disease.
USA, France, Great Britain - are the main countries in the spread of varicose veins (on average more than 30% of the population).
Causes of varicose veins
This utility manifests itself with increasing venous pressure. It is generally accepted that varicose veins are exclusively of the lower extremity, however, there are varicose veins of the esophagus, stomach, testicular veins, or varicose veins of the small pelvis.
By the way, the latter is one of the reasons for a fairly common disease such as hemorrhoids.
The main reasons for the development of varicose veins include:
- Gender: Often in female representatives, varicose veins are provoked by taking various hormonal drugs or pregnancy.
- Legacy
- Increased venous pressure, including due to weight problems, a sedentary sedentary lifestyle.
The above reasons contribute both to the dilation of the veins and to the disruption of the normal normal functioning of the venous valves.
Stages of the disease
The following stages of varicose veins are distinguished:
- Novices- characterized by pain, pain in the legs, swelling and aggravation. Disease prevention at this stage is, after all, the most appropriate.
- The first phase- knotted veins, spider veins, which can be seen through the skin, also add to the above symptoms. It is often possible burning sensation in the leg and calf area.
- Second phase- the number of varicose veins and stars increases significantly, becoming more visible. The pain becomes unbearable, the feet are draining a lot.
- The third stage- here the skin of the feet 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 feet. The venous nodes begin to take on a convex shape.
What happens to varicose veins?
One of the first symptoms of varicose veins is frequent swelling of the legs, enlargement and aggravation of the calves when you sit for a long time.
Also, no less characteristic of varicose veins is the reduction or disappearance of these symptoms after night rest or walking.
If you do not start treatment on time, the following symptoms appear - erupting pain in the calves, cramps in the calf muscles, a feeling of heat in the legs.
Also on foot you can see red-blue vascular "stars", safene veins dilate and you can see dark blue intradermal veins.
With advanced varicose veins, thrombophlebitis (inflammation of varicose veins with the formation of blood clots in them), eczema in the affected areas or trophic ulcers may develop.
To eliminate the risks of developing varicose veins, it is necessary to get rid of the main causes of its occurrence and external factors: smoking, alcohol, unhealthy diet.
Varicose veins of the lower extremities develop from a lack of fiber-rich foods in the diet. It is an intestinal cleanser that removes waste, pus, toxins and radionuclides from the body.
Varicose veins
There are the following types (forms) of varicose veins of the lower extremity:
- Localized venous lesion with impaired discharge through communicative or pathological veins.
- Localized lesions of intradermal or subcutaneous vessels without reflux.
- Diffuse venous involvement with impaired blood flow to deep veins.
- Disseminated lesion of veins with impaired blood flow through the communicating veins.
In addition, separately, such a form as the reticular form of varicose veins. It is a type of vein with common varicose veins, with it there is an expansion of the thin intracutaneous veins
diagnostic
When you observe the initial symptoms, you should immediately contact a specialist who deals with venous diseases - a phlebologist.
Success in treating varicose veins of the legs depends largely on when you started treatment. Of course, the earlier you see a doctor, the lower the risk of complications.
After the first examination, the doctor will prescribe an instrumental examination, usually Doppler ultrasound.
It happens that radiopaque and radionuclide methods are used, if the need arises.
With these methods, specific substances are injected into the bloodstream, and then their distribution through blood vessels is studied.
How to treat varicose veins
Varicose veins can be treated with 3 methods:
- Sclerotherapy.
- Performing a surgical operation on varicose veins.
- Medication (conservative treatment).
In addition to the above methods, the complex uses medical knitwear and physiotherapy exercises.
Below we will examine in more detail each of the 3 methods.
Sclerotherapy
Scleteropia is a painless, non-surgical and most importantly high quality and effective method for treating varicose veins. This is a fairly new way of treating varicose veins compared to others.
One of the main advantages of sclerotherapy is that the treatment does not require hospitalization, ie it is performed on an outpatient basis and that it does not affect in any way the normal rhythm of the patient's life.
The essence of the method lies in the fact that a special sclerosing drug is carefully injected into the "diseased" vein, which causes a kind of "sticking" of the veins.
After the procedure, a bandage is applied, which should be worn for a week. During this time, the vein becomes redundant, after which it disappears and blood circulation is restored.
Unfortunately, not all types of varicose veins can be treated with this method. If the patient needs surgery, then sclerotherapy will not only not help in this case, but can also cause a number of complications, and possibly even worsening.
For example, there is a classification of varicose veins according to the umbilicus, where varicose veins are divided into scales, and this method can only treat grade 1 varicose veins.
As for the consequences of sclerotherapy, it is the preservation of small bruises for a short period and a slight pigmentation of "diseased" veins.
Performed by a professional doctor, this method guarantees a stable result: varicose veins "close" and blood circulation never returns through them.
Operation
Surgical treatment for varicose veins or laser surgery for varicose veins. Currently, this method is one of the main ones. One, 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 that were born during pregnancy go away on their own without any intervention.
- If you are concerned exclusively with the aesthetic side of the problem and there are no other symptoms (inflammation of the veins, pain).
- A surgical method for treating varicose veins is indicated only if others do not make sense or will not bring results.
Treatment of varicose veins with a surgical method is performed, as a rule, on an outpatient basis, without hospitalization of the patient.
There are 3 methods of surgical treatment of varicose veins - ligation, stripping and microflebectomy.
- Judicial connection- This is a kind of ligation of varicose veins. As a rule, this method is used in combination with others, for example, it serves as an adjunct to undressing or phlebectomy.
- exposure- a surgical method for treating varicose veins, in which the "diseased" vein is removed using a small thin probe.
- Microflebectomy- the essence lies in the removal of varicose veins through a puncture, which is made into the skin.
Treatment method of treatment
Drug therapy is an equally important component in the treatment of varicose veins. Competently selected medications will help not only to remove quite basic manifestations of varicose veins, but also to reduce the risk of complications.
Most of these medications help relieve swelling and pain syndromes, improve blood flow, and so on.
These medicines help in the following cases:
- Improving lymphatic drainage function.
- Increase overall venous tone.
- Improve the microcirculation of hemorrhagic disorders.
It should be noted that the use of these drugs, like any other medication, should be carried out exclusively after a thorough examination and as prescribed by a physician.
Treatment with folk remedies for varicose veins
In addition to traditional medicine, there are also recipes from the "popular" first aid kit:
- Take a few cloves of garlic and chop finely. Note that only white peeled garlic is used! Then stir with two tablespoons of butter. We apply the resulting gruel to the "sore" veins for the night, on top of parchment paper, secured with a tight bandage, and finally wrap it with a warm scarf. In the morning, after the shower, we dress with something warm.
- Hop infusion is an equally effective folk remedy against varicose veins. Take the hop cones (make sure to dry) and pour 1 cup boiling water. Let it cook for an hour and then feel free to take the infusion half an hour before eating in a glass.
And remember varicose veins is not a sentence, it is still possible and necessary to treat, and the sooner you turn to a specialist, the easier and more effective the treatment itself will be.
Be healthy!