Varicose veins - a disease accompanied by the expansion of subcutaneous vessels or veins that are deep under the skin of the human body.
With this disease, the walls of the veins lose their elasticity, when varicose nodules appear, they expand, forming blood stasis, they are more visible on the legs of women. They are more likely to suffer from the disease. The disease can manifest itself at age 20, but more in middle-aged women. Men get sick too, but much less often.
The reasons
Sometimes the cause of varicose veins is the frequent use of alcoholic beverages. Alcohol itself causes vasodilation, but if abused, it will lead to adverse consequences.
Girls who like to sit cross-legged for hours are also at risk of developing the condition. In this position of the legs, blood stagnation occurs, which leads to interruptions in the natural blood supply to the entire body.
main factors
What are the causes of varicose veins?
- Heredity. If the parents had weakened vein walls, this can occur in children.
- The cause of the disease may be high blood pressure. Sometimes this is due to a violation of the hormonal system.
- For many women, pregnancy is difficult, especially late in pregnancy. At first, the disease does not manifest itself, but after childbirth, all signs of the disease are on the face. The stress that women experience during childbirth has a strong effect on the location of the veins.
- Overloading the body with the physical work of the muscles provides all the conditions for the development of the disease. It is often found in athletes involved in physical exercise. It is necessary to be able to properly regulate the load on the human body.
- People with sedentary work, in particular office workers, are subject to the development of varicose veins.
- Constantly standing is not better - it can also give the disease a boost.
- Women who often use contraceptives with a lot of hormones are at risk.
- Hip joint disease or previous injuries can lead to the development of the disease.
- People who are overweight are more likely to develop varicose veins. They have a constant load on the venous system.
- Abuse of sunburn, frequent saunas and drinking alcohol lead to the same situation.
Varicose veins are much easier to prevent than to cure. You just need to lead a healthy lifestyle, pay attention to good physical condition as well as normal nutrition. In this case, there is a high probability of avoiding varicose veins.
How do varicose veins appear on the legs? The first signs with a photo
As a rule, various symptoms of varicose veins can appear at an early stage, at which point the disease is still treatable.
As a rule, people rarely think of leg fatigue at night, swelling, or varicose veins. If the symptoms appear very sharply, we are talking about a neglected disease.
Early manifestations of varicose veins
As a rule, identifying the initial stage of varicose veins is not so easy. This is due to the fact that varicose veins have a large number of symptoms and few people pay attention to them. People ignore leg swelling and fatigue. This is especially true for pregnant women: varicose veins are often not given much importance and it is believed that during pregnancy such a complication is quite normal.
In fact, a lot of body weight can be considered the cause of varicose veins, but usually the pounds disappear after the baby appears, but it also happens that a woman who suffered from varicose veins during pregnancy cannot get rid of this disease after giving birth. This is often due to the fact that being overweight leads to venous disease.
The first symptoms of varicose veins are easy to notice: the legs start to get tired quickly from any physical activity, they become numb if they stay in one position for a long time. But, as a rule, rarely anyone pays attention to this, believing that leg pain when overcoming a long distance is normal. In winter, many attribute the pain to the presence of heavy insulating shoes on the feet, while in summer heat becomes the cause. However, this is just an excuse and there is no truth to it.
It is worth considering the first symptoms of varicose veins that can be noticed during the diagnosis when looking for a specialist: fatigue in the legs after little physical exertion or pain after wearing heavy shoes, women who wear heels often experience this, presence of pain, burning sensation in the legs at night, increased fatigue, deterioration of performance. If the disease is neglected, the first sign of varicose veins are ulcers.
Diagnosis
From the start of detecting a disease such as varicose veins, it is necessary to probe the veins to determine pain, tension, density, presence of sections of the vein that have been affected, swelling and inflammation within them. The specialist who handles this examination is called a phlebologist. What to do at the first signs of varicose veins on the legs? First of all, it is necessary to diagnose the severity of the disease.
During the procedure, the patient must be in an upright position so that the veins are filled with as much blood as possible. It is best if the diagnosis is carried out at night - this will allow the affected areas to acquire a more defined contour. With the help of palpation and superficial examination, a specialist can get the first information about the condition of the patient's vessels. After carrying out the preliminary examination, the second stage of the diagnosis of varicose veins begins - a study using ultrasound.
Performing tests during the diagnosis of varicose veins is an important source of information that helps in the correct diagnosis of the disease.
What tests are given if varicose veins are suspected?
The first analysis is blood sampling for hormones, biochemistry and hemoglobin. A general blood test is also done, your group and Rh, infectious group are determined.
After that, the patient needs to urinate for analysis to also determine hemoglobin, sugar, ketone bodies, and this analysis will also determine acetone and ammonia in the patient's urine.
ultrasound procedure
With the help of ultrasound or ultrasound examination of the veins, you can examine the venous system from the inside and find the foci of the disease. This procedure takes no more than half an hour, during which time the patient lies in a horizontal position.
Treatment
This disease is very dangerous and widespread throughout the world, depending on the stage of the course of the disease, different methods of treatment are used.
To treat the first signs of varicose veins on the legs, you need to consult a phlebologist, after the examination he will make the correct diagnosis, it is impossible to treat this disease on your own. If treatment is not carried out in a timely manner, patients may die.
Treatment methods for the first signs of varicose veins in the legs:
- sclerotherapy;
- medical treatment;
- Medicinal herbs;
- compression underwear;
- surgical intervention.
popular methods
They are used only in complex treatment in combination with drugs, you need to take tinctures of nettle, acacia. These tinctures are consumed three times a day before meals, it is useful to make fresh foot baths with decoctions of burdock, nettle and birch leaves.
All proposed herbal preparations are taken only with the permission of a doctor; it is not recommended to drink decoctions and tinctures on their own.
drug treatment
These drugs, which have a tonic effect on the veins, are sold in pharmacies in the form of tablets and capsules, ointments and gels.
In order for the application of ointments to be effective, it is recommended to wear compression underwear at the same time.
compression underwear
This range includes tights, stockings, at various stages of varicose veins, different compression underwear is prescribed. You can buy these medical socks in specialty stores.
This underwear helps to normalize the venous flow of blood, the compression of the necessary force restores the normal functioning of the veins.
Taking medication does not completely cure varicose veins, but it does remove some of the symptoms and ease the disease process. In addition, thanks to the use of various drugs, the risk of manifestation of a disease such as thrombophlebitis is reduced. This disease appears as a result of the lack of treatment for varicose veins, it is treated only in a hospital and surgery is often required.
I also often use lymphatic drainage massage for treatment, thanks to its use in the general course of therapy, the patient improves the flow of lymph in the legs, there will be less swelling, fatigue and heaviness in the legs will disappear. The only downside is the massage effect. It will only last for two months, but then the massage course can be extended.
sclerotherapy
This type of treatment is used if surgery is needed, but this procedure is different from surgery. A special drug is injected into the vein where the thrombus is found.
This medicine works in such a way that the top layer of the affected vein is destroyed and then sticks together. Then, after 1. 5 years, this vein dissolves in the human body, other veins begin to perform their work functions.
The drug is prescribed by a phlebologist, for each patient an individual treatment is applied. The course of sclerotherapy includes 3-6 procedures, after some time of 2-8 weeks the doctor will be able to determine how this treatment worked.
This procedure can only be performed by experienced specialists, as if the procedure is performed incorrectly, the vein will restore its blood flow through the sclerotic vessel and there will be no therapeutic effect.
In addition to the introduction of drugs, when applying this procedure, microfoam is injected into the vein. For the accuracy of this procedure, an ultrasound scanner is needed, thanks to which the doctor will see on the screen the movement of the needle and the process of dispensing the drug along it.
In more complex cases, when massage, compression underwear, medications do not help and the disease moves to a more acute stage, surgery is prescribed for these patients.
Consequences of varicose veins
The consequence of the disease is not a good omen, it is a cosmetic problem and associated with other health problems that have arisen as a result of varicose veins. Women who want their legs to be beautiful and slender are the ones who suffer the most. With the onset of the disease, this is impossible, but the cosmetic problem is not the main one. Varicose veins lead to more tangible health problems.
Most often, there is pain in the legs, accompanied by unpleasant itching. The aching pain arises from an insufficient amount of oxygen and other trace elements that cannot pass into the affected area. The cause of pain is the defeat of large veins. But small vessels also give unpleasant sensations.
Of course, a cosmetic problem is also important for women, but the most unpleasant consequences are swelling of the ankles. The pain is in the upper and lower legs. Even with good rest, a person will experience constant pain.
Dermatitis - a consequence of varicose veins
The most serious consequence is dermatitis. The disease develops at sites of expansion of the veins. With this disease, a person suffers from constant itching, formation of sores and various rashes. The appearance of dermatitis can lead to thrombophlebitis. When a blood clot appears, you need to urgently seek the help of a specialist. If this is not done, the consequences for a person can be very serious. Therefore, in no case can it be postponed.