Varicose veins on the legs are a chronic disease. The causes of varicose veins can be hereditary factors, a passive lifestyle, heavy loads on the legs and blood vessels. Varicose veins are common during pregnancy.
In pregnant women, the load on the legs increases, edema often occurs, and on that background, blood clots and other problems with blood vessels can appear, which leads to varicose veins.
At the first symptoms of varicose veins (swollen veins, venous network in the legs, severe swelling of the legs, pain in the legs and feet), you should consult a phlebologist. A thorough examination will be needed to determine the diagnosis and degree of varicose veins. After receiving the necessary information, the doctor will tell you how to treat varicose veins in the legs, prescribe the necessary medications and procedures.
Which specialist treats varicose veins?
When varicose veins appear, many patients do not know which doctor treats varicose veins? All vascular diseases are treated by a phlebologist. A phlebologist is a narrow medical specialization that includes the diagnosis and treatment of pathological venous diseases.
Of course, a phlebologist should not be visited when varicose veins are in an advanced stage. It is advisable to have a personal phlebologist who can see the development of venous diseases at an early stage and prescribe treatment.
If you have varicose veins, it is advisable to contact a venous specialist - phlebologist
Varicose vein treatment methods
Varicose veins are one of the most unpleasant and dangerous diseases for which various means are used for effective treatment. How to treat varicose veins? Varicose veins can be treated by choosing one of several methods.
The choice of treatment for varicose veins depends on the severity of the disease and the individual characteristics of the human body. The procedure for treating varicose veins must be agreed with your doctor. Among the ways to fight leg vein disease, the following effective methods can be distinguished:
Sclerotherapy
The essence of this technique is to inject a special substance (sclerosant) into the diseased veins with a thin needle.
Sclerosant, entering the vein, leads to sticking of the walls and removal of the affected vessel from the general network of blood channels in the legs.
Sclerotherapy helps to remove small varicose asterisks after 3-5 weeks, and after three months, large varicose nodules and nodules will disappear.
Surgical vein removal (phlebectomy)
This technique is used to seriously neglect varicose veins. Surgery is performed when varicose veins lead to the appearance of large nodules and seals in the vessels, which causes the appearance of huge blood clots. A significant disadvantage of surgical intervention in varicose veins are scars and scars on the skin.
Laser therapy of varicose veins is used as a suitable and absolutely painless method to combat varicose veins. The laser acts on the affected vessel according to the same principle as the sclerotherapy procedure. The walls of blood vessels are soldered under the influence of laser beams, but it will take a long time to effectively treat varicose veins. A positive aspect of laser therapy of varicose veins is the absence of scars on the skin.
Hirudotherapy or treatment of varicose veins with leeches. Leeches for varicose veins are often used by followers of natural medicine. This does not mean that the chiropractic technique is effective, it has a lot of drawbacks. To get a noticeable effect of chiropractic, you must go through several courses, each of which - 8 sessions. Treatment of varicose veins with leeches can be effective only in the initial phase of vascular diseases.
Prevention of varicose veins
Varicose veins begin to manifest in the form of severe or episodic pain in the legs, the appearance of a vascular network on the skin of the legs and bulging veins with a blue tinge.
It is advisable to warn varicose veins in advance, rather than then looking for various methods to cure it. Here are some precautions you can take to prevent the development of varicose veins.
- Do not wear tight or uncomfortable high-heeled shoes. Uncomfortable shoes increase the pressure in the vessels of the legs, which leads to the formation of blood clots and the development of varicose veins.
- Regular exercise can help you avoid varicose veins. It is recommended to dedicate time every day to walking, running, dancing, swimming. Varicose veins usually develop in salespeople, hairdressers, and flight attendants. Why is this trend being noticed? The legs of people of such professions receive a huge static load during the day as a result of prolonged standing. As a result, the development of varicose veins.
- You need to constantly monitor your body weight, because excess weight increases the load on the veins of the legs and increases blood pressure on the walls.
- It is recommended to regularly organize for yourself walks barefoot, on various rough surfaces (gravel, sand, dry grass). In that way, efficient toning of the veins on the legs is achieved, and at the same time the leg muscles relax and rest well.
- Don't consume salty and spicy foods and alcoholic beverages often. All spicy and salty foods contribute to the formation of blood clots in the vessels and the development of varicose veins. You can dilute thick blood with plain water or unsalted tomato juice.
- Varicose veins often provoke the development of such an unpleasant phenomenon as cellulite. How to treat cellulite in varicose veins? A patient with varicose veins is contraindicated through a series of procedures to effectively fight cellulite. Therefore, the doctor must choose an individual treatment plan for varicose veins, which will indicate how to deal with the resulting cellulite. In varicose veins, it is allowed to use a limited number of procedures aimed at removing the signs of cellulite. These treatments include blue clay foot pads, contrast water treatments, swimming and brisk walking. In varicose veins, exposure to high temperatures in the affected areas of the legs is extremely undesirable. For that reason, it is necessary to abandon thermal wraps in the fight against cellulite. With varicose veins, you cannot visit the swimming pool and sauna, go to the solarium, massage the swollen veins of the affected areas of the legs. In varicose veins, energy loads are contraindicated. Therefore, people who suffer from varicose veins will not be able to get rid of cellulite with great effort.
Varicose veins - when to see a doctor?
The first symptoms of early varicose veins should already be a signal to visit a medical specialist. The main signs of the development of varicose veins are:
- Strong weight and fatigue in the legs, swelling of the legs.
- Night cramps in muscle leaves.
- Attacks of burning and pain in the legs.
- Swelling of veins
- Appearance of small spider veins or large swollen veins on the surface of the skin.
Varicose veins can occur not only in the lower limbs. Varicose veins of the small pelvis, varicose veins of the uterus, varicose veins of the esophagus or genitals are also known. With the development of one of these types of varicose veins, the following symptoms appear:
- Severe lower abdominal pain
- Swollen inguinal veins
- Unpleasant discharge from the genitals
- Pain during sexual intercourse
- Low back and lower back pain that intensifies with the onset of menstruation
- Disorders of the menstrual cycle, prolonged menstruation with lubrication of secretions.
The listed symptoms are not specific, they can signal other diseases. In any case, if you suspect varicose veins, it is better to visit a competent specialist who will make an accurate diagnosis and prescribe the necessary procedures.
Diagnosis of varicose veins
Diagnostic measures to determine the degree of varicose veins the doctor begins to implement from the moment the patient reports. If the initial stage of varicose veins is diagnosed, then treatment will be conservative. Therefore, a visit to the doctor should not be delayed if you suspect varicose veins.
For a precise diagnosis of varicose veins and the degree of its complication, a comprehensive examination is performed with laboratory and hardware techniques. The patient must pass the necessary tests to conduct clinical and laboratory research, as well as go through procedures.
It is especially necessary to do triplex ultrasound, ultrasound dopplerography of blood vessels, to conduct a minimally invasive assessment of venous blood flow. For an accurate diagnosis, you will need to do an X-ray of the veins (a special procedure in which a radioactive contrast agent is injected into a diseased vein) to test the pressure in the veins over time.
Based on the obtained results, the phlebologist makes a comprehensive conclusion about the presence of varicose veins of one degree or another.
Traditional medicine against varicose veins
Varicose veins are a common disease that, in most cases, cannot be treated with conventional medications.
Varicose veins often occur in pregnant women who should not take strong medications.
Therefore, the treatment of varicose veins is increasingly practiced at home, using proven traditional medicine.
- For varicose veins, a decoction of hops, which is drunk three times a day, one glass at a time, helps. Chopped hop cones (1 tablespoon) must be poured over boiling water and insist a little.
- Apple cider vinegar is used both externally and internally to treat varicose veins. Drink apple cider vinegar diluted with water, one tablespoon a day. The areas of the legs affected by varicose veins are rubbed with pure apple cider vinegar, if there are no lesions or ulcers on the skin.
- Before going to bed, grated raw potatoes or finely chopped green tomatoes can be applied to swollen veins and bumps.
- For the treatment of varicose veins with folk remedies you can prepare a special ointment from the collection of herbs. You need to take a teaspoon of dried herbs chamomile, St. John's wort, chicory, coltsfoot and meadow. The whole herbal collection is poured with water in the amount of 1 ml and put on the fire until it boils. After boiling, you must add badger fat to the composition. For a week, the ointment should be applied to the leg areas with swollen veins, wrapping the legs with plastic wrap.
Treatment with folk remedies does not always give a lasting effect in varicose veins, but it effectively tones the veins and veins of the legs. An alternative treatment for varicose veins can be used if there is no drug treatment option.
It is possible to reduce the risk of developing varicose veins by following a proper diet and engaging in regular physical activity. Varicose veins can be completely cured by surgery, which is performed after a complete examination by a phlebologist.