Varicose veins are a disease that is associated with the dilatation of the subcutaneous vessels or veins that are located deep under the skin of the human body.
With this disease, the vein walls lose their elasticity, when varicose veins appear, they expand and form blood congestion, especially they can be seen on the legs of women. They are the ones who most often suffer from the disease. The disease can appear from the age of 20, but more so in middle-aged women. Men get sick too, but much less often.
causes
Sometimes the cause of varicose veins is frequent consumption of alcoholic beverages. Alcohol itself provokes vasodilation, but if abused, it leads to negative consequences.
Young girls who like to sit cross-legged for hours are also at risk of contracting the disease. In this position of the legs, blood stagnation occurs, which leads to disruptions in the natural blood supply to the entire body.
The most important factors
What are the causes of varicose veins?
- Inheritance. If the parents had weakened vein walls, this can be repeated in children.
- High blood pressure can be the cause of the disease. Sometimes this is due to a violation of the endocrine system.
- For many women, pregnancy is difficult, especially at the end of the pregnancy. At first, the disease does not manifest itself, but after childbirth all the signs of the disease are on the face. The stress women experience during childbirth has a major impact on the location of the veins.
- Overloading the body with physical muscle work provides all the prerequisites for the development of the disease. This is common among athletes who play sports. One has to be able to properly regulate the load on the human body.
- Sedentary people, especially office workers, are exposed to the development of varicose veins.
- Standing still is no better - it can also lead to illness.
- Women who frequently use high-hormone contraceptives are at risk.
- Hip joint disease or previous trauma can lead to the development of the disease.
- Obese people are most likely to have varicose veins. They constantly strain the venous system.
- Tanning abuse, frequent saunas and alcohol consumption lead to the same situation.
Varicose veins are much easier to prevent than cure. All you need to do is lead a healthy lifestyle, maintain good physical fitness, and maintain a normal diet. In this case, there is a high likelihood of avoiding varicose veins.
How do varicose veins manifest on the legs? The first signs of the photo
As a rule, various symptoms of varicose veins can appear in the early stages, for which the disease can still be treated.
As a rule, one rarely thinks of tired legs in the evening, swelling or varicose veins. If the symptoms appear too strong, then it is a neglected disease.
Early manifestations of varicose veins
As a rule, it is not that easy to identify the early stages of varicose veins. This is because varicose veins have a wide variety of symptoms and few people pay attention to them. People ignore the leg swelling and fatigue. It particularly affects pregnant women: Often, varicose veins are not given special importance and it is assumed that such a complication is quite normal during pregnancy.
In fact, the cause of varicose veins can be considered excessive body weight, but usually the kilograms disappear after the appearance of the baby, but it also happens that a woman who suffered from varicose veins during pregnancy does not get rid of this disease after itcan give birth to a child. Often this is because being overweight leads to venous disease.
The early symptoms of varicose veins are easy to spot: the legs quickly become tired and numb with any physical activity if they stand in one position for a long time. But, as a rule, rarely anyone pays attention to it, believing that leg pain when negotiating a long distance is normal. In winter, many attribute the pain to the presence of highly insulated shoes on the feet, while in summer the heat is the cause. However, this is just an excuse and there is no truth in it.
It is worth considering the earliest symptoms of varicose veins that may appear when diagnosing when contacting a specialist: leg fatigue after low physical exertion or pain after wearing heavy shoes, often women with heels are affected by the presenceof pain, burning in legs in the evening, increased fatigue, deterioration in the ability to work. If the disease is neglected, ulcers are the first sign of varicose veins.
diagnosis
From the beginning, in order to detect a disease such as varicose veins, it is necessary to examine the veins to determine pain, tension, density, the presence of affected sections of the vein, swelling and inflammation in them. The specialist who performs this examination is called a phlebologist. What to do at the first signs of varicose veins on the legsFirst 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 blood as much as possible. It is best if the diagnosis is carried out in the evening - this will give the affected areas a more precise contour. With the help of palpation and a superficial examination, the specialist can obtain initial information about the condition of the patient's vessels. After the preliminary examination, the second stage of varicose vein diagnosis begins - the examination with the help of ultrasound.
Performing tests while diagnosing varicose veins is an important source of information that will help diagnose the disease properly.
What tests are carried out if varicose veins are suspected?
The first test is a blood draw for hormones, biochemistry, and hemoglobin. A general blood test is also done, determining the group and rhesus, the infectious group.
After that, the patient needs to give urine for analysis to also determine hemoglobin, sugar, ketone bodies, and this analysis will also determine acetone and ammonia in the patient's urine.
Ultrasonic method
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 process takes no more than half an hour while the patient is in a horizontal position.
treatment
This disease is very dangerous and spread all over the world, different treatment methods are used depending on the stage of the disease.
To treat the first signs of varicose veins in the legs, you need to consult a phlebologist, after the examination he will make the correct diagnosis, you can not treat this disease yourself. In the event that timely treatment is not received, patients can die.
Methods of treating the first signs of varicose veins on the legs:
- Sclerotherapy;
- medical treatment;
- Medicinal herbs;
- Compression underwear;
- surgical intervention.
Traditional methods
They are used only in a complex treatment in combination with drugs, you need to take tinctures of nettle, acacia. These tinctures are drunk before meals three times a day. It is useful to make cool foot baths from decoctions of burdock, nettle and birch leaves.
All suggested herbal preparations are taken only with the permission of a doctor; it is not recommended to drink decoctions and tinctures yourself;
Treatment with medication
Used drugs that have a tonic effect on the veins and are sold in pharmacies in the form of ointments and gels.
In order for the application of ointments to be effective, the wearing of compression underwear is also recommended.
Compression garments
This range includes tights, stockings, in different stages of varicose veins, different compression of the laundry is prescribed. You can buy such medical tights in specialty stores.
This underwear helps normalize venous blood flow, the necessary compression force restores the normal functioning of the veins.
Taking medication does not completely cure varicose veins, but it does eliminate some of the symptoms and make the disease easier. Thanks to the use of various drugs, the risk of the manifestation of a disease such as thrombophlebitis is also reduced. This disease occurs because varicose veins are left untreated, it is only treated in a hospital, and surgery is often required.
I also often use lymphatic drainage massage for treatment, thanks to its use as part of general therapy, the patient's lymph drainage in the legs improves, edema decreases, and tiredness and heaviness in the legs disappear. The only negative is the effect of the massage. It only lasts two months, but then the massage course can be extended.
Sclerotherapy
This type of treatment is used when surgery is needed, but this procedure is different from surgery. A special medicine is injected into the vein where the thrombus is located.
This drug works by breaking the top layer of the affected vein and then sticking it together. Then, after 1. 5 years, this vein dissolves in the human body and other veins begin to perform their work functions.
The drug is prescribed by a phlebologist, each patient is treated individually. The course of sclerotherapy includes 3-6 procedures, after a while of 2 to 8 weeks the doctor can determine how this treatment worked.
This procedure can only be performed by experienced specialists, since if done incorrectly, the vein will restore blood flow through the sclerosed vessel and will not have a therapeutic effect.
In addition to administering medication, this procedure involves injecting microfoam into the vein. For the accuracy of this procedure, an ultrasound device is needed, thanks to which the doctor sees on the screen the movement of the needle and the process of distributing the drug on it.
In more difficult cases, when massages, compression garments, and medication do not help and the disease progresses to a more acute stage, these patients are prescribed operations.
The consequences of varicose veins
The consequence of the disease does not bode well, this is a cosmetic problem and linked to other health problems caused by varicose veins. The women most affected are those who want their legs to look nice and slim. With the onset of the disease, this is impossible, but the cosmetic problem is not the main problem. Varicose veins lead to more tangible health problems.
Most often there is pain in the legs, which is accompanied by uncomfortable itching. Aching pain is caused by insufficient oxygen and other trace elements that cannot reach the affected area. The cause of the pain is damage to the large veins. But also small vessels give unpleasant sensations.
For women, of course, a cosmetic problem is also important, but the more unpleasant consequences are swollen ankles. The pain disappears in the thighs and lower legs. Even with good rest, the person will feel pain all the time.
Dermatitis - a consequence of varicose veins
The worst consequence is dermatitis. The disease develops in places of varicose veins. With such a disease, a person suffers from constant itching, sore formation and the appearance of various rashes. The onset of dermatitis can lead to thrombophlebitis. If a blood clot appears, you need to urgently consult a specialist. If this does not happen, the consequences for a person can be very serious. Therefore, it should definitely not be delayed.