The rainy autumn is just around the corner - a time when we move less and sit a lot, wear heavy shoes all day long and take hot baths more often and for longer. All this does not have the best effect on our blood vessels, and especially on veins with varicose veins.
Use the deceleration in life to your advantage: pay attention to the health of your feet.
What are varicose veins?
It seems that everything is completely clear: these are dilated and visible veins in the legs.
However, such changes are not just a cosmetic defect, but a manifestation of insidious varicose veins.
What's up?
The superficial veins of the lower extremities expand, creating conditions for slowing blood flow and the formation of thrombi (blood clots) in the lumen of the vessels.
Driven
Due to a lack of nutrition and blood supply, trophic ulcers appear - skin defects on the legs that do not heal in the long term.
The resulting blood clots can break loose and travel through the body with the blood. What does that mean? The development of thromboembolism: the lumen of the vessel suddenly becomes blocked, creating an obstacle to blood flow. Various organs are affected: an acute stroke (stroke) or an infarction (myocardium, kidney, lungs) can occur. The complication is life-threatening and often leads to disability.
What else is known about varicose veins?
The older a person gets, the higher the risk of developing varicose veins. The disease has neither gender nor age. The disease can even occur in children, although it is quite rare. Women get sick more often than men.
A short excursion into anatomy
Our blood moves through the systemic and pulmonary circulation.
Normal
The heart beats rhythmically and pumps blood through the vessels. Thanks to gravity from top to bottom, blood moves easily through the arteries.
When it reaches the legs, the blood turns around and begins to flow back through the veins - from the legs to the heart. Without additional anatomical structures, this process is difficult because the blood simply flows back. To ensure normal blood flow, nature has provided valves in the veins that allow blood to flow only in one direction - upward.
The heart, vein walls and valves have assistants - the leg muscles. Thanks to the energetic work of the muscles, the blood vessels in the legs contract and relax, pushing blood up from valve to valve.
For varicose veins
The walls of the veins become weaker, expand and lengthen. In this case, the valves stop closing, a gap forms between them, which leads to a slowdown in blood flow. Over time, a vicious circle develops: the slower the blood flows, the more the veins stretch and the worse the valves function.
Our veins are under attack
It is believed that varicose veins are a hereditary disease (in 98% of cases). A certain gene is passed down to us from our ancestors and causes weakness of the venous wall and inferiority of the venous valves. However, even in this case the disease does not always develop.
Other unfavorable factors:
- Overweight or obesity.
- A person performs heavy physical work, lifting weights and standing on his feet for a long time.
- Intense sports, leg injuries.
- Sedentary lifestyle: A person is forced to sit for a long time - for example, 6-8 hours a day at the computer or in the car.
- In women – wearing heels, pregnancy and childbirth, taking hormonal contraceptives (blood thickens).
- Chronic constipation.
- Nutritional features: increased amount of carbohydrates, lack of vegetables and fruits. Because the body does not receive the necessary substances to restore the structure of the vein wall.
How do you recognize varicose veins? What to do?
The disease progresses in several stages, with new symptoms gradually appearing. Only a doctor should understand that.
You can independently assess the health of your veins and/or suspect the development of a disease.
When to go to the doctor
At the first signs of illness: swelling, heaviness or pain in the legs, sometimes cramps in the calf muscles. In this case, there may be no visible changes in the veins of the lower extremities.
And of course, if veins appear on your legs, you need to see a doctor as soon as possible. It doesn't matter which veins are visible or how strong they are. These can be dilated veins with the formation of bluish nodules. Sometimes the changes are subtle in the form of a vascular pattern - the so-called "stars" or "mesh", which are the first signs of varicose veins.
The correct diagnosis is the basis for successful treatment
Doppler ultrasound and duplex angioscanning of the leg veins are performed. The research is informative even in the early stages of the disease: when there are only complaints and there are no visible changes in the veins.
From tablets and ointments to operations
If you have varicose veins, please contactPhlebologist. The sooner the doctor takes care of your feet's health, the more effective the treatment will be.
The "gold standard" is surgical removal of varicose veins, which has been performed for decades. The procedure is somewhat traumatic and is performed in a hospital under anesthesia with incisions and stitches.
However, modern medicine takes a gentle and comprehensive approach to solving the problem.
The choice and combination of methods depends on the severity of the disease:
- Phlebotonics and phleboprotectors are prescribed - drugs that improve the condition and tone of the venous wall and increase the outflow of venous blood from the lower extremities.
- Blood thinners, anti-inflammatory drugs and painkillers are used.
- Wearing therapeutic compression stockings (stockings/tights). The course is selected by the doctor depending on the stage of the disease or for prevention.
- Minimally invasive surgical interventions: sclerotherapy, endovenous laser coagulation, radiofrequency obliteration of veins. The altered veins are "glued" or "sealed" together. The procedure lasts about an hour and after some time the patient goes home. Advantages: no cuts, infections, suppurations. Thanks to technology, the risk of complications is almost zero.
Can varicose veins be cured?
No. If a person has inherited a disease from his ancestors, no doctor can cure this disease forever.
They can eliminate the consequences of the disease, stop its further development and eliminate complications. However, there is still a fairly high risk of relapse. Therefore, follow your doctor's recommendations and avoid situations that negatively affect the health of your veins.
Flying gait: prevention of varicose veins
Almost every person is at risk of developing varicose veins, so it wouldn't hurt for all of us to follow simple rules in certain situations.
During pregnancy
Hormonal changes and compression of the inferior vena cava by the pregnant uterus lead to stagnation of blood in the veins of the lower extremities.
Here's how to do it
Choose compression stockings together with your doctor. If there are signs of illness, phlebotonics are prescribed.
Heavy lifting while standing or sitting
Blood circulation worsens and strain on the lower extremities increases.
Here's how to do it
Avoid tight clothing and socks with tight elastic bands. Do not wear shoes with heels higher than six cm. During work, move more often, change positions and do simple exercises.
When sitting, avoid crossing your legs, uncrossing your legs, or placing one or both legs underneath you.
With a sedentary lifestyle
Blood stagnates in the veins of the lower extremities.
Here's how to do it
Do sports that put dynamic strain on your lower leg. By contracting and relaxing, the muscles improve the movement of blood in the vessels. Swimming, running, walking and cycling are suitable.
With hereditary predisposition
There is a high probability that the disease gene will manifest itself sooner or later. It doesn't matter which veins were weakened in our ancestors - hemorrhoids, in the legs or in the groin.
Here's how to do it
Visit a phlebologist once a year for a preventive examination. Try to move more and avoid situations that negatively affect the veins.
P. S.Varicose veins are a "silent" disease. The disease does not cause pain for a long time, does not cause inconvenience and does not affect life. Unless the "mesh" is perceived as an annoying cosmetic defect. In the meantime, a timely visit to the doctor will help avoid many problems.