Varicose veins are not only a problem for older people, but also for very young people. How soon after childbirth young women experience leg varicose veins, pain, and other varicose vein problems.
signs of varicose veins in the legs
The first signs of varicose veins in the legs are thought to be small blood vessels on the surface of the skin. They appear in small groups on the thighs. This is especially noticeable with cellulite. By the way, cellulite is directly related to varicose veins. Cellulite-altered fatty tissue makes it difficult for blood to drain from the lower extremities and increases the risk of developing varicose veins. Blood vessels that appear on the skin are called telangiectasias by doctors. These vascular networks are formed by small blood vessels, which may be a simple cosmetic defect, or they may serve as a marker for the onset of varicose veins.
To find out if you are at risk for varicose veins, it is advisable to consult a doctor. The doctor will also recommend treatments to apply to the vascular network. Another symptom of varicose veins is swelling of the legs. However, other diseases (kidney disease, heart disease, etc. ) can cause swelling in the legs, so these must be ruled out first. Finally, the most unpleasant and indicative symptom of varicose veins is leg pain. The pain usually appears in the afternoon, an area of great physical exertion. Calf muscle injury, painful pulling, not very strong.
So if you have these symptoms: spider veins, swelling, leg pain - you should consult your doctor.
Medications for varicose veins in the legs
There are many effective medicines in the initial stages of treating varicose veins in the legs. These are so-called venotonic drugs. They only give tangible results in complex treatments. Therefore, in order to enhance the effect of varicose veins, patients with varicose veins should often wear elastic stockings. These are special stockings, stockings and tights. They gently compress the diseased limb without squeezing blood vessels. As a result, the veins gain additional tension and the disease progresses more slowly.
However, it is important to note that drug therapy cannot completely eliminate varicose veins. This simply reduces venous insufficiency and prevents thrombophlebitis (which often complicates life for people with advanced leg varicose veins).
Your doctor may recommend lymphatic drainage. This is a special massage performed manually or by hardware. After lymphatic drainage, swelling was reduced and blood and lymphatic outflow from the lower extremities improved. However, the effects of this procedure are temporary and short-lived, so it is impossible to refuse to take IVs and wear compression stockings.
Folk remedies for treating varicose veins
In addition to medication for varicose veins, you can also try folk remedies. So, the shower works great. Gradually, over a few days, you need to massage your legs with the water from the shower. Each day, by lowering the water temperature slightly, you will gradually switch to cold water - this will have the most dramatic effect. If it's hard to pour yourself cold water, schedule yourself a contrasting shower: turn on the hot water and then the cold water for a few seconds, and you have to finish the program with the cold water. The legs should turn red after the shower. Wipe them off with a towel and grease them with a nourishing cream.
Foot bath was helpful. Note that with varicose veins, you cannot take a hot bath.
To keep your legs from getting tired during the day, follow this recipe for a morning shower. Birch leaves, nettle leaves and burdock leaves (1 tablespoon each) in 1 liter of boiling water and soak for half an hour. Next, the resulting broth must be diluted with lukewarm water (to bring it to body temperature) and you can take a shower. Put your feet in the decoction for at least 20 minutes.
Tone the blood vessels in the legs, bathe with lemon balm, oregano, chamomile and nettle. Take 2 cups of the mixture (mix all herbs in equal parts) and brew with one liter of boiling water. After infusing the broth, add 2 liters of water and place your feet in a warm bath for 20 minutes.
Note that folk remedies do not completely cure varicose veins, they only stop their development.
What is sclerotherapy?
Sclerotherapy is one of the most effective non-surgical treatments for varicose veins. The essence of the method is that the doctor injects a special drug into the veins that have been altered by the varicose veins. The drug destroys the lining of the veins, and then the veins themselves gradually stick together and subside over 1. 5 years. Blood circulation begins through healthy veins. Treatment requires 3-6 sclerotherapy sessions on each leg. After a course of sclerotherapy, you will see results after 2-8 weeks, during which unpleasant phenomena may occur: hematoma, tingling, pain. But over time, this will pass and the swollen veins will disappear. Doctors choose medicines individually for each patient, so there is little risk of side effects and complications. Varicose veins rarely recur after high-quality sclerotherapy.
If sclerotherapy is performed using an ultrasound scanner, it is called echosclerotherapy. This method is better because the scanner gives the doctor full control over the movement of the syringe in the vein and monitors the even distribution of the medication.
Sclerotherapy in the form of a foam is a method of injecting the drug in the form of a microfoam into the affected vein. The microfoam is in tighter contact with the vein wall, which results in a higher efficiency of the method. The microfoam forces blood out of the veins - so the veins stick together and stop working faster. Also, the blood draining from the vein does not dilute the drug like traditional sclerotherapy, so the drug is more effective.
Varicose Vein Surgery
One of the most modern surgical methods for treating varicose veins in the legs is performed under tumescent anesthesia. It is a local anesthesia based on a mixture of natural anesthetics. This approach has many advantages: the patient leaves the clinic within 2 hours of surgery, there is virtually no postoperative hematoma, and there is no poisoning that occurs with general anesthesia. The veins are completely removed and the effect lasts for years.
Surgery under general anesthesia is equally effective, the only difference being that patients tolerate local anesthesia more easily than general anesthesia.
Veneectomy - This procedure is performed under local anesthesia. The doctor removes the tributaries of the varicose veins with a puncture. In some cases, this surgery can replace sclerotherapy. Patients recover quickly, with no scars, and compression stockings only need to be worn for 1-2 weeks.
Short Strip - This method involves not removing the entire vein, but only its affected area. The doctor determines the exact location and length of the diseased vein, and then makes two small incisions through which the varicose vein is removed. The operation time is short and the soft tissue of the leg is not cut - this allows the patient to recover quickly and experience no pain after the procedure.
The method of endoscopic vein dissection is now widely used. Briefly, an incision is made in the affected vein and an endoscope is inserted. The doctor has the opportunity to see inside the affected vein. Moving the endoscope, the doctor finds the length of the varicose vein and cuts it off. The advantage of this method is that the doctor sees what he is doing, which keeps him from making mistakes and minimizes the trauma that the patient inevitably suffers during the procedure. This is a very promising method of treating varicose veins, as the result of this procedure is a gradual decrease in venous insufficiency and an improvement in the condition of the veins.
Intravascular laser coagulation is another low-invasive method for treating varicose veins. The ultrasound scanner controls the introduction of the light guide into the vein. The light guide is then moved to the point where the vein enters the deep venous system. The laser is turned on, the plasma boils under its action, and the diseased vein is safely closed and stopped.
In most cases, varicose veins are passed down from generation to generation. Doctors don't know exactly why the disease occurs, but they think those with grandmothers and mothers with varicose veins should be especially careful about their legs. As a precautionary measure, running, swimming, massage in the shower, trying not to gain weight, eating right. . . never lose heart!