Varicose Veins - Facts, Causes And Treatment

Facts

• Varicose (derived from the Latin root “varix” which means twisted) simply means swollen. Veins, like arteries are blood vessels. Arteries carry blood from the heart to the rest of the body while veins carry blood back to the heart. Did you know there are more than 60,000 miles of blood vessels within the body?
• Deep veins are veins found deep in the leg muscles and when these muscles contract (e.g. when walking or jogging), they force blood flow upstream along the deep veins. This is how blood is delivered from the legs to the heart.
• There are small 1-way valves along the walls of the veins that prevent blood from flowing in the reverse direction. There are 3 types of such valved veins in the legs : deep veins, superficial veins found under the skin and perforated veins whose valves allow blood to flow from the superficial veins to the deep veins. Perforated veins means they pass through the thick leg muscles to each the deep veins.
• Varicose veins result when the 1-way valves become faulty causing a blood build-up in the veins. This stretches, enlarges and widens the veins.
• Varicose veins are visible near the surface of the skin and they appear as bulging bluish-colored twisted knots and even the skin feels bumpy. They can show up anywhere though mostly on the calfs and thighs, affecting both men and women alike.
• Varicose veins can cause aching, burning, heaviness, tiredness, cramps and itching in the legs or they may not cause any pain at all.
• Though deeper varicose veins are not visible, the skin above them may darkened and swell. In severe cases, varicose veins can burst or develop open sores (ulcers) on the skin around the ankles and heels (e.g. stasis dermatitis).
• Varicose veins occuring within the anal area are called piles (hemorrhoids).

Causes

• Family history. An inherited weakness of the valves in the veins.
• With age, the elasticity of the walls along the veins are weakened which stretches the veins.
• Hormonal changes within the body during pregnancy and menopause relaxes the walls of the veins. In addition, during pregnancy the veins may receive extra pressure from the expanding uterus (womb) causing dilation. Also, the use of birth control pills or estrogen replacement therapy alters the female hormone levels which might lead to varicose veins.
• Deep vein thrombosis (economy-class syndrome), a blood clot in the deep vein.
• Obesity and lifting heavy objects are also contributing factors.
• Varicose veins can show up as a result of liver disease.
• Consult a physician if you cut a varicose vein, experience pain, swelling or develop skin ulcers near a varicose vein.

Treatment
Varicose veins are usually harmless. They can be treated with ligation surgery or sclerotherapy (injected medication to close affected vein so that blood moves to another vein). Spider veins can be treated with sclerotherapy and laser. Though newer and supposedly effective removal methods will be developed in time to come, it is always important to make sure you gather lots of information about these procedures and seek professional and sound advice before making your decision.

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