Varicose veins are a problem not only for the elderly, but also for the young. How often does a young woman after giving birth get varicose veins in her legs, pain and other problems of varicose veins.
Signs of varicose veins in the legs
The initial signs of varicose veins of the legs are considered to be the appearance of small vessels on the surface of the skin. They appear in small groups on the thigh. This is especially evident with cellulite. By the way, cellulite is directly related to varicose veins. Fatty tissue altered by cellulite makes it difficult for blood to flow from the lower extremities and increases the risk of developing varicose veins. The vessels that appear on the skin are called telangiectasia by doctors. These vascular networks are formed by small vessels, which can be a simple cosmetic defect, or can serve as a sign of the appearance of varicose veins.
To understand if you are at risk of varicose veins, it is recommended to consult a doctor. The doctor will also advise the treatment method to be used for the vascular networks. Another symptom of varicose veins is swelling of the legs. However, the legs can swell in other diseases (kidney disease, heart disease, etc. ), so these diseases should be ruled out first. And finally, the most unpleasant and indicative symptom of varicose veins is leg pain. The pain usually appears in the afternoon, an area of heavy physical exertion. The calf muscles hurt, the pain is pulling and not too strong.
So, if you have these symptoms: spider veins, swelling, pain in the legs - you should consult a doctor.
Medical treatment of varicose veins of the legs
There are many effective drugs in the initial stages of treating varicose veins of the legs. These are the so-called venotonic drugs. They give tangible results only in complex therapy. So, to increase the effect of venotonics, patients with varicose veins should constantly wear compression stockings. These are special socks, stockings and tights. They gently press the diseased limb without squeezing the vessels. Thus, the veins get additional tone, and the disease develops more slowly.
However, special attention is paid to the fact that drug treatment cannot completely get rid of varicose veins. This is only a decrease in venous insufficiency, prevention of thrombophlebitis (which often complicates the life of people with advanced varicose veins of the legs).
The doctor may advise the patient to undergo a course of lymphatic drainage. This is a special massage performed by hand or with equipment. After lymphatic drainage, swelling decreases, blood and lymph flow from the lower extremities improves. However, the effect of this procedure is temporary, short-lived, so it is impossible to refuse to take venotonics and wear compression stockings.
Folk remedies in the treatment of varicose veins
In addition to medical treatment of varicose veins, you can try using folk remedies. So a shower gives a good effect. Gradually, over several days, you should massage your feet with a stream of water from the shower. Every day, lowering the water temperature a little, you will gradually switch to cold water - and this will give the most significant result. If it is difficult to pour cold water on yourself, organize a contrast shower: turn on the hot and then cold water for a few seconds, and you must finish the procedure with cold water. After such a shower, the legs should become red. We rub them with a towel and apply a nourishing cream.
Foot baths are helpful. Note that with varicose veins, you cannot take hot baths.
So that your feet don't get tired during the day, take a bath according to this recipe in the morning. Leaves of birch, nettle and burdock (each taken 1 tablespoon) are boiled with 1 liter of boiling water and infused for half an hour. Then, the resulting soup should be diluted with warm water (to bring it to body temperature) and you can take a bath. Keep your feet in the boil for at least 20 minutes.
Tones the vessels of the feet and a bath with lemon balm, oregano, chamomile and nettle. Take 2 cups of the mixture (mix all the herbs in equal parts) and boil it with a liter of boiling water. Once the liquid is in, add 2 liters of water and keep your feet in a warm bath for 20 minutes.
Note that folk remedies cannot completely treat varicose veins, but will only stop its development.
What is sclerotherapy?
Sclerotherapy is one of the most effective non-surgical treatments for varicose veins. The essence of the method lies in the fact that the doctor injects a special medicine into the vein changed by varicose veins. This medicine causes the inner layer of the vein to be destroyed and then the vein itself gradually sticks together and resolves over a period of 1. 5 years. Blood circulation begins to pass through healthy veins. Treatment requires 3-6 sclerotherapy sessions for each leg. After sclerotherapy sessions, you will see the result only after 2-8 weeks, and during all this time there may be unpleasant phenomena: hematoma, tingling, pain. But over time, this will pass and the swollen veins will disappear. The doctor selects the drug individually for each patient, so the risk of side effects and complications is minimal. After high-quality sclerotherapy, varicose veins rarely recur.
If sclerotherapy is performed using an ultrasound scanner, then it is called echosclerotherapy. This method is better because the scanner allows the doctor to fully control the movement of the syringe in the vein and monitor the uniform distribution of the drug.
Foam sclerotherapy is a method in which a drug in the form of microfoam is injected into the affected vein. The microfoam has closer contact with the vein walls and this leads to a higher efficiency of this method. The microfoam forces the blood out of the vein - and therefore the vein sticks together and stops working faster. In addition, the blood drawn from the vein does not dilute the drug, as in conventional sclerotherapy, so the drug works more effectively.
Operations for varicose veins
One of the most modern surgical methods for the treatment of varicose veins of the legs is an operation under tumescent anesthesia. It is a type of local anesthesia based on a mixture of natural anesthesia. This method has many advantages: the patient leaves the clinic within 2 hours after the operation, there is almost no postoperative hematoma, there is no intoxication that occurs with general anesthesia. The vein is removed radically, the effect continues for many years.
Operations under general anesthesia are no less effective, with the only difference being that patients tolerate local anesthesia much more easily than general anesthesia.
Miniphlebectomy - this operation is performed under local anesthesia. The doctor makes punctures through which he removes the varicose branches of the veins. This operation can serve as a substitute for sclerotherapy in some cases. Patients recover quickly, there is no scarring, and compression stockings only need to be worn for 1-2 weeks.
Short stripping - this method involves removing not the entire vein, but only its affected area. The doctor determines the exact position of the diseased vein, its length, then two small incisions are made through which the varicose vein is removed. The operation is short, the soft tissues of the leg are not cut - this allows the patient to recover quickly and not experience pain after the operation.
Now the method of endoscopic vein dissection is widely used. In simple words, an incision is made in the affected vein, into which an endoscope is inserted. The doctor has the opportunity to see the inside of the affected vein. By moving the endoscope, the doctor discovers the length of the varicose vein and then cuts it. The advantages of this method are that the doctor sees everything he does, this allows him not to make mistakes and minimize the trauma that the patient inevitably receives during the operation. This is a very promising method for the treatment of varicose veins, as the result of such an operation is a gradual decrease in venous insufficiency and an improvement in the condition of the veins.
Intravascular laser coagulation is another low-trauma method for treating varicose veins. An ultrasound scanner controls the insertion of a light guide into the vein. Then the light guide is moved to the point where the vein enters the deep venous system. A laser is turned on, under the action of which the blood plasma boils, and the diseased vein closes tightly and ceases to function.
Most often, varicose veins suffer from generation to generation. Doctors do not know exactly why this disease occurs, but they believe that those whose grandmothers and mothers had varicose veins should be especially careful about their legs. As a preventive measure, jogging, swimming, shower massage are recommended, try not to gain excess weight, eat properly and . . . never lose heart!