Varicose veins in the legs are not only a cosmetic problem that worries people about their attractiveness, but also a dangerous disease that requires adequate treatment and prevention.
There are many causes of varicose veins: sedentary lifestyle, lack of physical activity and hormonal disorders, congenital weakness of the walls of blood vessels, pregnancy. What happens during varicose veins? With varicose veins of the lower extremities, they lose their normal elasticity and stretch under blood pressure.
The valves in the arteries normally lock and close as blood passes through them, allowing the blood to flow again. If the valves do not work properly, blood can flow freely downstream, causing blood stasis.
From this point of view, the vessels cannot cope with the pressure, they dilate, and the valves can no longer close the large lumen. . . all this leads to the beginning of the initial stage of varicose veins (see photo).
Why does varicose veins occur and what is it? The main risk factors for the development of the disease are genetic predisposition and sex. Women are twice as likely as men to suffer from varicose veins due to high-heeled shoes, hormonal changes during pregnancy and contraceptive use.
Disease development:
Supported bySecondary varicose veins occur with leg injuries, heart defects, liver and spleen dysfunction. In this case, first of all, the appropriate treatment of the primary disease is carried out.
The main risk factors for the development of the disease are genetic predisposition and gender. Women are twice as likely as men to suffer from varicose veins due to high-heeled shoes, hormonal changes during pregnancy and contraceptive use.
Disease development:
Supported bySecondary varicose veins occur with leg injuries, heart defects, liver and spleen dysfunction. In this case, first of all, the appropriate treatment of the primary disease is carried out.
Something that promotes varicose veins
The development of varicose veins is based on the congenital weakness of the venous wall, the lack of superficial vascular valves and the associated increase in venous pressure. Special one-way valves prevent blood from flowing back and prevent stagnation in one place, and when destroyed, the flow of blood back from the tissues to the heart is disrupted. It should be noted that conservative treatment does not affect vascular pressure.
There are 3 stages in the development of symptoms in the development of varicose veins.
Varicose veins are not a very serious disease in themselves, but if they are already developed, they will never go away on their own, and even more, they will lead to all sorts of complications that pose the greatest danger.
The first signs of the development of varicose veins:
In the later stages, spider veins appear on the skin, the veins and various seals swell, which indicates the density in the veins.
The diagnosis of the early stages of the disease is very difficult, because in the early stages there are no spider veins and dilated vessels that rise above the skin.
Symptoms of early varicose veins:
Often, before the first spider veins are visible or veins are found where they were not previously seen, the patient does not feel other symptoms of the disease, and only cosmetic defects in the skin cause discomfort. As a rule, in the early stages, the symptoms of varicose veins disappear completely or are significantly reduced with rest, so they are often overlooked.
One or more varicose veins on the skin indicate the development and severity of the disease. When standing for a long time, there is a sharp pain in the area of the nodules, numbness, tingling, "creeping reptiles", an explosion in the legs. At the end of the day, swelling that disappears after a night's sleep often occurs. You can judge edema with shoes that are free in the morning when you start pressing in the evening.
Thrombophlebitis is one of the most common complications of varicose veins. In addition, increased pressure in the venous part causes erythrocytes to penetrate the tissues through the walls of the vessels. For this reason, skin pigmentation, thickening and tissue hypoxia are observed, which contributes to the formation of trophic ulcers. Even minor damage to the skin in the area of the nodule can cause tearing and heavy bleeding.
In order to diagnose varicose veins of the lower extremities and prescribe appropriate treatment, the specialist will offer the patient a comprehensive examination of various methods.
Only a highly qualified phlebologist can diagnose deep vein varicose veins.
The complex course of varicose veins is accompanied by thrombosis and inflammation of the vessels, trophic ulcers and skin diseases. These complications are manifested by discoloration of the skin on the legs, redness, darkening, blue skin.
Persistent swelling of the ankle, especially when walking or standing. Pain during walking in the calf area, pain along the mixed vein, induration in the skin and ulcers of various sizes appear on it.
Pregnancy significantly increases the risk of developing varicose veins of the lower extremities, which is due to the following reasons:
For varicose veins in the legs, treatment may not be medically necessary unless the symptoms are problematic.
However, some people may want to be treated for varicose veins for cosmetic reasons because they are dissatisfied with their appearance.
Let's look at the main methods that will help you get rid of this problem.
Physical activity - brisk walking, gymnastics, swimming and water movements (except for sports with heavy loads on the legs - tennis, weightlifting, jumping) play an important role in treatment and prevention.
Conservative treatment of varicose veins is mainly prescribed for people with obvious contraindications to surgery.
A similar treatment is indicated if the patient has a slight dilation of the blood vessels, which is only a cosmetic defect. The purpose of conservative therapy is to prevent further development of the disease. For this purpose, patients are advised to use an elastic bandage on the legs affected by varicose veins. In addition, compression stockings are indicated for varicose veins. People who are prone to varicose veins or suffer from this disease should regularly raise their legs during the day, so they need to rest for a few minutes. There are also special exercises for the lower leg and foot aimed at activating the muscular-venous pump. This is the periodic stretching and bending of the ankle and knee joints.
The patient should be careful not to allow the thighs and thighs to pull together with different items in the toilet, as this can significantly impede venous blood flow.
Thanks to elastic compression, you can activate blood flow in deep veins, prevent edema, reduce the amount of blood in the saphenous veins, improve the body's metabolic processes and blood microcirculation.
But for positive results, it is important to wrap the foot properly. This operation should be done before getting out of bed in the morning. The bandage starts from the toes to the thighs and there should be a slight tension in the bandage. Be sure to hold the heel and ankle during the dressing process. First, the bandage should cover half of the previous round with each surrounding curve. Only get certified elastic bandages and compression stockings.
Treatment of varicose veins should include a low heel and a stiff sole, as well as comfortable shoes. You should not stand for a long time, avoid physical stress, stay in rooms with high temperatures and humidity for a long time. In a dream, it is advisable to keep your feet in a high position.
Patients should limit fluid and salt intake and try to get rid ofoverweight. For the treatment of varicose veins, it is necessary to periodically take diuretics, drugs that improve vascular tone. In addition, if there are indications, the patient may be prescribed drugs that stimulate microcirculation in the tissues. Therapy for varicose veins may also include the use of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs.
If the patient has a simple form of the disease, he is given physical therapy. Swimming, other water procedures, foot baths with warm water with the addition of 5-10% sodium chloride solution are very useful.
Local therapy methods are often used to treat varicose veins. However, such treatment should be used in conjunction with other medications. Topical drugs for varicose veins are produced in the form of gels, ointments, creams. Most of these drugs containheparinor venoactive components. Ointments for varicose veins help to normalize the tone of the walls of the veins, can correct lymphatic flow and microcirculation disorders. Some topical preparations contain several different active ingredients.
If you have a secondary infection with varicose veins, it is recommended to use foreign substances withantibioticsorantiseptics.
hirudotherapyhas been used to treat varicose veins since ancient times. The use of leeches allows the blood to thin by secreting hirudin, promotes the formation ofblood clots, gets rid of spider veins and varicose veins. In addition, hirudotherapy for varicose veins can reduce pain in the legs and get rid of edema. However, it is important to apply hirudotherapy in the early stages of varicose veins. It should not be used by people with this treatmenthemophilia,anemia,hypotension,pregnant women.
However, a radical method of treating varicose veins is surgery. It is performed to eliminate venous-venous reflux. If the patient has diseases of the lungs, cardiovascular system, kidneys and liver, such an operation is not performed. You can not perform such an operation on pregnant women, as well as people suffering from purulent diseases. Modern technology allows the use of endoscopic methods for such an operation.
Sclerotherapy is allowed if a person has only enlarged small branches. This operation involves inserting a sclerosing solution into the vein to attach it to the vessel wall. Then, in other parts of the vein, repeated injections are performed to achieve complete destruction of the vein.
In varicose veins, combined surgical therapy is used, in which the large trunks of the modified vessels are removed and the small branches are sclerotherapy. After surgery, patients are advised to continue wearing elastic bandages for 8-12 weeks.
Those who are looking for an effective and miraculous treatment for varicose veins will immediately be saddened: even the most modern and expensive drugs are not able to completely eliminate varicose veins. They help relieve pain, swelling and even improve the condition of the venous wall, but there is no complete recovery.
In addition, conservative treatment has a material effect only in the early stages of the disease, after which it is carried out to prevent further development of varicose veins. The leading role in the treatment of this disease belongs to phytopreparations based on natural plant substances. However, keep in mind that most venotonic drugs cause photosensitization; you should not allow the sun's rays to hit exposed skin areas while taking them.
In addition to medication use, relaxation activities, and special exercises for the legs, doctors regularly recommend wearing compression stockings: socks, knee pads, tights. Improves blood microcirculation and prevents edema. It is very important to choose the size and degree of compression of elastic stockings, which can be both prophylactic and therapeutic.
Use venotonic tablets for varicose veins to improve vascular tone - phlebotonics. These preparations are similar and contain a purified flavonoid fraction of 90% diosmin. Take one tablet twice a day, the course of treatment is chosen individually.
Horse chestnut preparations can be used to reduce capillary permeability, reduce blood viscosity and increase venous tone
There are many ways to treat varicose veins in the legs with folk remedies for both external and internal use. Below are the most common:
In addition to folk remedies, many patients with varicose veins complete the treatment with special gymnastics - Mikulin's exercises allow you to feel significant improvement.
Oftenacute superficial vascular thrombophlebitismanifests itself as a complication of varicose veins. Sometimes the damage results in rupture of the varicose veins and bleeding. When blood is shed from an exploding knot, a very significant blood loss is possible.
In addition, arterial blood flow slows down due to increased pressure in the vascular system. Therefore,hypoxiaand subsequentoxygen starvationmay develop. Due to the development of such a situation, tissue cells can die, which is a dangerous process for the body. Due to the stagnation of blood in the arteries, toxins accumulate in the tissues.
Complications of this disease include blood clots, malnutrition of the tissues of the feet, pigmentation and darkening of the skin.
subcutaneous fat layer gradually becomes denser,dermatitis,venous trophic ulcersappear. In very rare cases, such ulcers degenerate into malignant formations.
If the disease persists for a long time, the person laterchronic venous insufficiencymay develop.
However, the most dangerous complication of varicose veins is
If you belong to a risk group, your relatives suffer from varicose veins or, due to the nature of their work, often have to stand up - you need to pay special attention to the condition of your feet to avoid missing the first "calls".
Basic preventive measures prevent the onset of the disease and slow down the development of existing varicose veins.
Prevention measures:
Despite its prevalence, varicose veins are difficult to treat. When the first alarming symptoms appear, do not delay a visit to the vascular surgeon, because the sooner the disease is detected, the greater the chance of avoiding surgery.
Varicose veins in the legs are a disease that can be treated for years, and even after surgery, they reappear in 80% of cases.
The prognosis depends on the initial stage of treatment. A number of preventive measures in the early stages (treatment of varicose veins with venotonics twice a year and a healthy lifestyle) can stop the further development of the disease. You need to follow a strict prevention framework throughout your life.
In the later stages (with severe deformity, nodules, edema and signs of tissue oxygen starvation), the prognosis determines the presence of co-morbidities (diabetes, obesity) and the patient's willingness to follow the doctor's recommendations (examine, take medication, lose weight).
Complications of varicose veins (thrombophlebitis, trophic ulcers) with diabetes mellitus develop in 89%.
Varicose veins are a non-life-threatening disease, but complications can significantly worsen quality of life and prognosis. Approximately 50% of patients with deep vein thrombosis die from thromboembolism within 3 months.