WHAT IS VENOUS INSUFFICIENCY?
What Is Venous Insufficiency:
Venous insufficiency, also known as venous reflux, is a condition that develops when the veins in your legs become unhealthy or damaged. This causes blood to reflux or pool in your veins which leads to a number of uncomfortable symptoms such as leg pain, burning, itching, restless leg, heaviness and fatigue. When left untreated, venous reflux can lead to more significant issues such as pain, chronic swelling, skin discoloration, thickening of the skin and ulceration. More than 30 million people in the U.S. are affected by this disease with only 1.9 million seeing treatment annually. This leaves the vast majority undiagnosed and untreated. Without treatment, those with the disease may experience progressive symptoms such as swollen legs, skin damage and ulcers that can be painful and significantly impact their quality of life.
When diagnosing venous insufficiency here at the Alpha Vein Clinic Las Vegas a duplex ultrasound is performed on the lower extremities to look at the diameter of the vein. Veins of certain diameters are considered abnormal and treatment is needed. Also looked at under ultrasound is reflux or backflow of blood in the veins. Individuals with known dilation, reflux and bothersome symptoms can benefit from treatment to their diseased veins by having them shut down.
Conservative treatment options like compression stockings, leg elevation, daily exercise, weight management can all be used for relief of symptoms. Although this will not fix the physiological problem at hand, these measures can help the individual manage their symptoms prior to treatment. In the end you will need to fix the underlying problem in the veins before you will really experience any relief.
There are a number of factors that contribute to chronic venous insufficiency, including pregnancy and heredity.
VENOUS INSUFFICIENCY TREATMENT:
No oral medication has been proven useful for the treatment of venous disease. Graduated compression is the cornerstone of the modern treatment of venous insufficiency. Surgical or endovenous therapy is commonly reserved for those with discomfort or ulcers. The primary goal of such therapy is to improve the venous circulation by correcting venous insufficiency by removing the major reflexing pathways.Like any disease, (CVI) is most treatable in its earliest stages. Vascular medicine or vascular specialists typically recommend a combination of treatments for people with (CVI). Some of the basic treatment strategies include:
- Avoid long periods of standing or sitting: If you must take a long trip and will be sitting for a long time, flex and extend your legs, feet, and ankles. If you need to stand for long periods of time, take frequent breaks to sit down and elevate your feet.
- Exercise regularly. Walking is especially beneficial.
- Start a healthy nutrition plan if you are overweight.
- Wear compression stockings.
*The goals of treatment are to reduce the pooling of blood and prevent leg ulcers*
Although, there are potentially many reasons for leg pain, it is important to know that none of them are normal part of aging and they do need to be investigated.
Leg pain can be caused by abnormalities in muscles, bones, nerves or blood circulation. Most medical practitioners do a very good job investigating causes that relate to the bones, nerves, muscles and even the arterial circulation. A very common and agonizing cause of leg pain that is not well understood by most doctors is poor circulation of blood in the veins causing Chronic Venous Insufficiency (CVI). Here at the Alpha Vein Clinic Las Vegas we are very thorough and aggressive to evaluate all potential causes of leg pain, especially Chronic Venous Insufficiency, that may have been missed in the past. Call us today at (702) 430 7661. We can’t wait to help you give yourself a gift this holiday season of no more leg pain and uncertainty! We have helped many others in you same situation to get relief.
Alpha Vein Clinic
3150 N. Tenaya Way Ste. 400
Las Vegas, NV, 89128
(702) 430 7661
Dr. Sassan Kaveh
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