WHAT IS VARICOSIS?

Many people experience varicose veins in their lives.Unfortunately, this is a fairly common phenomenon, affecting not only the feet, as is commonly believed, but also other organs.Fortunately, it is treatable.True, it is long and complex and should be started only after fully understanding the reasons for its occurrence.

WHAT CAUSES VARICOSCOSE, WHO SHOULD BE CONCERNED?

The main symptoms of the onset of the disease:

• the appearance of spider veins, or even a web;
• veins became visible;
• the skin on the legs is uncomfortably dry;
• cramps in the muscles of the legs;
• swelling of the legs and heaviness appeared at the end of the day;
• thickening or darkening;
• the veins became sensitive.

What are varicose veins?This question torments many middle-aged people and others.This term refers to swelling of the veins in the lower extremities.The veins swell, form knots, become very tortuous and create a bumpy blue surface.

This happens because the blood circulation in the veins is not good enough.The blood stops moving properly, causing the pressure inside the vein to increase.When it exceeds all normal levels, the excess blood begins to have a stretching effect on the walls of the veins.The edges of the vessels move closer to the upper layer of the epidermis and become visible to the naked eye.The first sign of varicose veins is the appearance of vascular networks.Leg vessels that are visible through the surface of the skin are diseased.

Varicose veins - what they are, has been known since ancient times.Even Byzantine doctors mentioned this disease in their works.The Egyptians treated it using elastic bandages, and Hippocrates, Avicenna and Paracelsus tried to invent more effective ways to treat it.

It is very scary that this pathology is very common - approximately 25 percent of the world's population is susceptible to this disease.Phlebologists say that the main cause of varicose veins is the poor level of development of the connective tissues in the legs.More often, women suffer from this disease, as constant hormonal changes create good conditions for the development of the disease.

VARICOSE PREVENTION

Good strong veins require constant self-care.In the initial stage, varicose veins destroy the beauty of the legs and pose a slight threat to health, but as they progress, they create complications and are life-threatening.Varicose veins of other organs are most often associated with various diseases and to get a real effect they must be treated together with them.The risk groups that must first be remembered for the prevention of varicose veins:

1. Anyone who leads a sedentary lifestyle.
2. It costs a lot during the day, for example at work.
3. Who is overweight or obese.
4. Always wears high heels or very tight shoes.
5. There is illness (or recent surgery) in the pelvic area.
6. Wear tight clothing that restricts blood circulation.
7. Often sits cross-legged.
8. Pregnant women.
9. Athletes who train with regular overloads.
10. Take hormonal medications.

Many people do not even suspect that they are carriers of a serious disease.The advanced stage of this disease is quite difficult to treat, unlike the initial stage.Therefore, everyone, and especially those who have a bad heredity, should know what varicose veins are, their symptoms, and remember that a timely visit to the phlebologist is simply necessary, just like a preventive examination at the dentist.You have to take care of your health yourself, without letting things take their course.

Varicose veins, what is it?

To understand what varicose veins are, let's look at the basic causes of this disease.As you know, our body is penetrated by a dense network of blood vessels, some of which carry blood to the heart - veins, others, on the contrary, carry it in the opposite direction - arteries.As long as the system runs smoothly and the blood vessels are clean, elastic and not subjected to excessive stress, everything is fine.If regular failures begin, sooner or later they can lead to diseases, one of which is varicose veins.

It can occur in any part of the body, but is most often found in the extremities.Partly because, by lifting the blood up the legs, the veins cope with great loads, partly because our limbs are one of the busiest parts of our body - we are forced to lift weights, walk a lot, stand or sit, which is also bad, as it interferes with the normal flow of blood.

VARICOSE VEINS OF THE EXTREMITIES: COMPLICATIONS

The most common form of this disease, which is basically what is meant when varicose veins are mentioned, are varicose veins of the legs.His initial symptoms were listed above, but what could lead to neglect of treatment?We list the main complications of this disease:

• thrombophlebitis;
• phlebotrombosis;
• trophic ulcers;
• bleeding from varicose veins.

What is thrombophlebitis?This is inflammation of the walls of the external veins and the appearance of blood clots in them, which not only narrow the space for blood flow, but in the end can completely block the vessel.It accompanies varicose veins of the extremities almost from the beginning.And a person who does not take care of his veins, as a result, and a host of complications, gets acute thrombophlebitis, when a blood clot not only interferes with blood circulation, but is also the center of inflammation, affecting not only the walls of the vessel, but also nearby tissues.

Phlebothrombosis– this is the name of deep vein thrombophlebitis, an equally serious and difficult-to-treat disease, when thrombosis interferes with blood flow and the vessels and tissues around them become inflamed.What is thrombosis?This is the appearance of blood clots in the vessels, interfering with the blood flow, or even completely blocking the lumen of the blood vessels.Even a partial reduction in the supply of fresh blood slows down tissue metabolism and leads to the accumulation of its products, and complete blockage can eventually lead to cell death, that is, tissue necrosis.

The particular danger of these diseases is that it can ultimately lead to thromboembolism - a blood clot, once released, will migrate with the blood circulation throughout the body, blocking one of the large arteries, which in turn can be fatal.

Another serious problem, varicose veins of the last stages, are trophic ulcers - open, long-term non-healing wounds.How long?If within a month and a half the wound does not seem to heal, this is a trophic ulcer.It is being treated, but it is a long and complex treatment, when surgical and therapeutic methods must be combined.

No less dangerous is a complication such as bleeding from varicose veins.It can be caused either simply by the thinning of blood vessels in places of thickening, or by mechanical stress.Because it costs nothing to damage a container that has become thin and lost its elasticity.Don't think this only applies to external veins;the deep ones are just as "delicate" and sensitive to any stress, impact or displacement.

The consequences of not treating varicose veins in the photo:

Varicose veins in the video make an even more depressing impression.To prevent this from happening, you should consult a doctor as soon as possible and follow all his instructions carefully, both in treatment and in lifestyle.

TYPES OF VARICOSES

As mentioned above, there are other types of varicose veins.There are many of them;these diseases arise for different reasons, and while some are quite widespread, others are a very rare phenomenon, usually associated with other diseases.

1. Reticular varicose veins are a network of blue stars in the thighs and calves.It also occurs in young and thin people, and is often considered only a cosmetic defect, although this is the first bell - you need to see a phlebologist.
2. Stars and vascular networks on the face are a reason to visit an endocrinologist, as this often indicates that a person has problems with the endocrine system.Although the reason can also be in the lifestyle - alcohol abuse, fatty and unhealthy foods, tanning, the habit of squeezing acne.
3. Varicose veins of the hands - more often this problem appears in athletes and those whose work requires constant heavy load on the hands.
4. A varicocele is a varicose vein that surrounds the testicles.It is a very common pathology and therefore men, especially teenagers, should consult a doctor at the first symptoms, because untreated often leads to infertility.
5. Hemorrhoids are varicose veins of the rectum.It can be caused not only by a sedentary lifestyle, but also by lifting weights, pregnancy, constipation and a number of other reasons.
6. Varicose veins of the legs have several stages and if the treatment is not received at the initial stage, it can lead to severe vascular pathology and disability.
7. Varicose veins of internal organs usually occur as a complication of other diseases or in the postoperative period.This can be varicose veins of the organs of the pelvis, stomach, esophagus, etc.

This is a short list of the main types of this serious disease.You can learn how to treat varicose veins of any type from the detailed articles published on our website.We try to talk regularly about traditional and more modern methods of its treatment.

CHRONIC VENOUS INSUFFICIENCY

The source of this problem is bipedalism, which means that we are the only species on Earth that are susceptible to it.We will not consider pseudo-scientific hypotheses that explain why this happened, although some of them are quite funny.One, for example, assumes that humanity arrived on earth from Mars, where the force of gravity is much smaller, and therefore our body is not adapted to terrestrial loads, the other, that humans were created by aliens and were underdeveloped somewhere.Either way, walking requires your blood vessels to pump blood to a significant height, which means it puts them under serious stress.

Usually this system works harmoniously, the blood quickly and evenly supplies all parts of the body with oxygen and necessary substances.But if some kind of failure occurs (injury, for example) or the body is constantly affected by some unfavorable factors (hard work, heavy weight, hormonal deficiency, etc.), CVI develops - chronic venous insufficiency.In recent decades, this disease has become significantly younger and now appears not only in the older generation, but also in teenagers, and therefore everyone should know its symptoms:

• telangiectasia - expansion of small superficial vessels;
• swelling of the legs, worse in the evening;
• Cramps, cramps and other painful sensations in the calf muscles;
• cold feet;
• pigmentation of the skin of the legs;
• discomfort and general fatigue throughout the day.

As you can see, they mostly coincide with the symptoms of varicose veins that were listed at the beginning of the article, because this is the beginning of the same disease - varicose veins.Therefore, if you have at least some of these signs, you should immediately contact a phlebologist, who will prescribe treatment and help you decide on diet and lifestyle.Varicose veins are not diseases that can be cured with pills, in fact it is a way of life that must be followed continuously in order not to encounter more severe stages of its development.

Modern science offers many treatment methods that to some extent compensate for CVI, removing both its external manifestations and generally positively affecting the condition of blood vessels.For example, read about spider veins on the legs, their causes and treatment.Medicine now offers a number of measures to combat this "cosmetic" defect, including:

• conservative therapy - ointments and tablets to strengthen the walls of blood vessels and stimulate blood flow;
• compression therapy - special medical underwear;
• invasive therapy – microthermocoagulation, microsclerotherapy.

Also effective methods that help eliminate telangiectasia and its causes include therapeutic exercises and lymphatic drainage massage.

Treatment of varicose veins with complications is much more difficult, but even here an integrated approach does its job.What does it mean?This is what modern medicine offers:

1. Therapeutic methods - medications, special underwear, massage, physiotherapy.
2. Surgical methods (phlebectomy, miniphlebectomy, short stripping, endoscopic vein dissection, etc.).This is the most radical method of treating varicose veins, which requires not only preparation for the operation, its professional implementation, but also qualified observation after the operation.

Medicinal treatment of varicose veins includes the use of medications for oral administration - such as drops, tablets and capsules, as well as for application to the skin - these are various ointments that are used to rub sore legs.Some drugs narrow and strengthen blood vessels, others relieve inflammation and others reduce blood coagulation, so they can only be used after a doctor's prescription.External agents, i.e. various creams, ointments and jellies, usually have analgesic, anti-inflammatory and antipyretic properties.Often they are supplemented with components that affect blood coagulation.These drugs act mainly on superficial vessels, but have fewer contraindications.

After detecting chronic venous insufficiency, if possible, it is necessary to exclude the causes of venous disease.That is, change a job that requires you to stand all day or lift weights, lose weight, give up spicy food, etc.It is clear that, for example, you cannot remove a hereditary predisposition, but knowing about this, you can choose a suitable profession and monitor the condition of your veins, including visiting a phlebologist once a year for prevention.Despite all the advances in medicine, our health is still in our hands.