It is good to be aware about the problem of varicose veins and prevent from it. Once the devil of this disease takes hold it may be possible to arrest the pain caused but it is impossible to completely eliminate the disease.

When the veins in certain part of the body become widened the other part of the body gets lesser or improper and irregular supply of blood, the working capacity of the heart may get affected.

The great danger is the collection of blood in one spots that clotting of blood. Blood clotting can occur in any part of the vein and the clot can move with the circulation of the blood. It can clot in the leg but it can also clot in the vein pertaining to heart or lungs as well as brain.

Cause for Varicose Veins
To remain standing for the whole day or longer time (may be part of profession)

Going on walking, who have not to sit at all, the veins of such people get little dilated than necessary because of the higher pressure of blood in these veins.

In the case of ladies, irregular menses, pregnancy or repeated delivery as well as very quick deliveries, and miscarriages, including the menopause time, it is very much possible that the varicose veins may result.

Varicose veins Symptom
• Aching, heavy legs (often worse at night and after exercise)
• Ankle swelling
• A brownish-blue shiny skin discoloration around the veins
• Skin over the vein may become dry, itchy and thin, leading to eczema (venous eczema)
• The skin may darken (stasis dermatitis), because of the waste products building up in the legs
• Minor injuries to the area may bleed more than normal and/or take a long time to heal
• Rarely, there is a large amount of bleeding from a ruptured vein
• In some people the skin above the ankle may shrink (lipodermatosclerosis) because the fat underneath the skin becomes hard.
• Restless Leg Syndrome. Restless Leg Syndrome appears to be a common overlapping clinical syndrome in patients with varicose veins and other chronic venous insufficiency.

Complications in varicose veins
Most varicose veins are relatively benign, but severe varicosities can lead to major complications, due to the poor circulation through the affected limb.
• Pain, heaviness, inability to walk or stand for long hours thus hindering work
• Skin conditions / Dermatitis which could predispose skin loss
• Bleeding : life threatening bleed from injury to the varicose vein
• Ulcer : non healing varicose ulcer could threaten limb amputation.
• Development of carcinoma or sarcoma in longstanding venous ulcers. There have been over 100 reported cases of malignant transformation and the rate is reported as 0.4% to 1%.
• Coagulation of blood in varicose veins cause superficial thrombosis, deep vein thrombosis (DVT), Pulmonary Embolism (PE) & could precipitate stroke in the rare case of predisposed individuals (that is, patients with patent foramen ovale).

Diagnosis of varicose veins
Varicose veins are easily visible. To work out the position and extent of valve weakness, there are a number of tests a doctor might do. Like,
Doppler test (uses ultrasound sound waves)
Colour duplex ultrasound imaging.
Trendelenburg test.

Varicose vein surgery
This involves removing the affected superficial veins. There are many variations of operation, depending on which veins need treatment. The most common is called ligation and stripping.

Non-surgical treatment for varicose veins
Elevating the legs provides relief in varicose veins. "Advice about regular exercise sounds sensible. The wearing of graduated compression stockings with a pressure of 30–40 mmHg has been shown to correct the swelling, nutritional exchange, and improve the microcirculation in legs affected by varicose veins. They also often provide relief from the discomfort associated with varicose veins. Caution should be exercised in their use in patients with concurrent arterial disease.

The symptoms of varicose veins can be controlled to an extent with either of the following:
• anti-inflammatory medication like ibuprofen or aspirin can be used as part of treatment for superficial thrombophlebitis along with graduated compression hosiery. -- but there is a risk of intestinal bleeding.

• Diosmin 95 is a dietary supplement distributed in the U.S. by Nutratech, Inc.
Sclerotherapy is used for telangiectasias (spider veins) and varicose veins that persist or recur after vein stripping. A Cochrane Collaboration review concluded sclerotherapy was better than surgery in the short term (1 year) for its treatment success, complication rate and cost, but surgery was better after 5 years, although the research is weak. A Health Technology Assessment found that sclerotherapy provided less benefit than surgery, but is likely to provide a small benefit in varicose veins without reflux. Complications of sclerotherapy are rare but can include blood clots and ulceration.

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