Simple varicose veins in the lower extremities
What is saphenous varicose vein?
Saphenous varicose vein is a common disease that can develop all year round, mostly because the saphenous vein valve loses its “one-way valve” and the blood flows backwards, causing stasis in the saphenous vein, presenting a worm-like vein mass or a greenish-purple line of blood vessels. Female patients are troubled by the hot summer and dare not wear skirts and bare legs, and when the condition is serious, the ankle will be blackened and ulcerated, and the bleeding will not stop easily, which seriously affects people’s health. Therefore, we should pay great attention to the prevention and early treatment.
Who are more likely to suffer from saphenous varicose vein?
Varicose veins are closely related to occupation and lifestyle habits, those who need to stand or sit for long periods of time at work, such as
You spend more than 2 hours a day standing or sitting
You are pregnant
You feel sore and tired in your legs after a long day of work
You have visible dilated capillaries on your legs that do not protrude from the body surface
According to the survey, the incidence of varicose veins in China is increasing year by year, and the incidence of varicose veins is trending towards a younger population. Epidemiological statistics show that the incidence rate is about 25% or more, and can be as high as 38% in individual occupations such as primary and secondary school teachers, shopping malls, bank clerks and manual laborers. Its high incidence has seriously affected the health of people. Saphenous varicose vein has become a serious public health problem and has attracted great attention from all over the world.
What are the causes of saphenous varicose veins?
The causes of simple saphenous varicose veins are
Congenital weakness of the vein wall
Venous valve insufficiency: Insufficient closure of the venous valves → venous blood regurgitation → stasis → foot swelling → pigmentation → local nutritional disorders → ulcer formation.
Must saphenous varicose veins be a simple superficial vein problem?
It is not correct to think so. There are many other causes that can cause saphenous varicose veins, such as
Primary deep vein valve insufficiency in the lower extremities: causes blood to flow backwards, producing venous stasis and high pressure. Patients exhibit severe clinical symptoms of swelling and distending pain in the lower extremities, and the skin of the lower extremities may appear red or cyanotic when standing. In the later stages of the disease, the traffic vein valves in the foot and shoe area are disrupted and rapid trophic changes in the skin occur, with desquamation, atrophy, hyperpigmentation, and eczema and ulcer formation.
Lower extremity deep vein thrombosis sequelae: Patients appear uniform and consistent swelling of the limbs, when the lower extremity deep veins are obstructed by thrombus, forming a return obstruction, after which the thrombus is mechanized and reopened, the venous valves are destroyed and the blood is refluxed; this is manifested as lower extremity superficial static varicosities, lower extremity edema, heavy and swollen or sore feeling of the limbs and nutritional changes.
Arteriovenous fistula: mostly occurs after trauma, occasionally congenital; tremor and continuous vascular murmur can be felt and heard at the site of arteriovenous fistula; when the limb is picked up, the blood in the varicose veins of the lower limb is not easily emptied
Congenital venous malformation bone hypertrophy syndrome (Klippel-Trenavnay syndrome): this disease is a congenital vascular malformation, varicose veins are more extensive, the affected limb is often thicker than the healthy side growth
Budd-Chiari syndrome: post-hepatic portal hypertension caused by hepatic venous outflow tract disorder, often with varicose veins in the back and lumbar region and bilateral lower limbs
Doctor’s suggestion: If you have varicose veins and at the same time ①young ②lower limb edema ③bilateral lower limb varicose veins, any of the three, we suggest you go to a specialist for further treatment.
What are the clinical manifestations of saphenous varicose veins?
We can’t live and work normally without two healthy legs, and varicose veins are harmful to this.
Early manifestations.
Sore and swollen legs after standing for a long time, easy fatigue and weakness
Generally speaking, the symptoms are lighter when you wake up in the morning, and the symptoms increase at night after a busy day at work.
Some patients have numbness and mild pain on the inner side of the ankle (also known as the “neck of the foot”)
There is a worm-like blue varicose vein mass in both lower legs
Due to the general lack of awareness of health care, varicose veins are often in the middle and late stages when they are seen in the hospital.
Late stage manifestations.
Heavy soreness and swelling in both legs after standing for a long time, even affecting work
Both lower legs are covered with varicose vein masses
Eczema and ulcers on the feet and ankles, and ulcers on the feet and ankles due to the development of varicose veins in the middle and late stages – commonly known as “old rotten feet”
What are the risks of saphenous varicose veins?
Varicose veins, especially those with venous insufficiency of lower limbs, cause swelling, soreness and weakness of lower limbs in the early stage, which affects normal work and life, and the prominent earthworm-shaped blood vessels of lower limbs also seriously affect the beauty of lower limbs; in the middle and late stage of varicose veins, ulcers, oozing, bleeding and infection of lower leg skin appear, which causes great negative impact on patients from psychological and physiological aspects and seriously affects quality of life.
How to prevent saphenous varicose vein in early stage?
The key to preventing saphenous varicose veins is to use your legs healthily, which means that people who need to stand or sit for a long time should not keep one position for a long time without moving. You should move your legs or change your position every 20 minutes or so. In addition, cycling, brisk walking, and running can prompt the calf muscles to contract, speeding up venous blood flow and relieving venous pressure.
What are the treatment methods of saphenous varicose vein?
1.Conservative treatment: elevate the affected limb, wear medical elastic stockings, and take oral swelling drugs such as Mizarin and Diosmin.
2.Invasive treatment: traditional open surgery, punctiform aspiration, laser intracavitary electrocoagulation, ligature of traffic branch under lumpectomy, sclerotherapy
How should early varicose veins be treated?
Early varicose veins are usually treated conservatively by
Wearing medical elastic stockings, which are made according to the physiological pressure gradient of the lower limbs, thus protecting the veins of the lower limbs when standing, elevating the affected limbs and avoiding long-term standing or sitting.
If you want to eliminate the varicose veins for cosmetic reasons or to eliminate the symptoms completely, surgery is the only effective way.
Does surgery have to be performed for intermediate and advanced varicose veins?
Not necessarily, but conservative treatment is also possible. The main methods are
The above treatments can improve the symptoms and slow down the development of the disease, but they can only achieve short-term effects. It can be said that in the middle and late stages of the disease, the varicose veins have already undergone irreversible changes, and no conservative treatment method can solve the problem at the root. Therefore, surgery to completely remove the diseased veins is an aggressive treatment option.
The “punctiform aspiration” is a minimally invasive treatment method that uses a small “mini” incision with cosmetic stitches, which does not require stitch removal after surgery, resulting in less trauma, faster recovery, and more complete healing.
What do patients with saphenous varicose veins need to pay attention to in their lives after surgery and can they continue to exercise after surgery?
Generally speaking, you can eat and drink normally on the same day or the next day after surgery, and continue to wear medical elastic stockings for three months after discharge, so as to reduce the recurrence after surgery.