Grab Your Legs: How to Get Rid of Varicose Veins

Legs without signs of varicose veins

In the warm season, when you absolutely want to wear short shorts and skirts and draw attention to your legs, the picture can be spoiled by the vascular network, stars and puffiness - clear signs of varicose veins. We learned from a professional phlebologist how to quickly and permanently solve this problem.

"Every man is more interested in a woman who is interested in him than in a woman who has nice legs, " said Marlene Dietrich. Despite this, you should not forget about the health and beauty of your legs. Especially if you already have vascular networksto have.

Expertise: vascular surgeon and phlebologist: "The most obvious signs of varicose veins of the lower extremities (or simply varicose veins) are not that many. Visible spider veins (telangiectasia), prominent veins, and nodules are the most obvious. It is impossible not to notice such symptoms. But they appear when the disease is already running. But heaviness in the legs, restless legs syndrome and swelling are not so obvious symptoms of varicose veins. If you already have them, then this is a good reason to sign up for a consultation with a phlebologist. In general, this disease is well known to adult women, although, unfortunately, young girls and even men know about it firsthand.

Why do varicose veins appear?

The older we get, the greater the risk of varicose veins: we sit a lot and walk little, gain weight, the blood thickens, hormonal changes occur, the level of collagen in the walls of blood vessels decreases, which reduces the elasticity and density of the veins. As a result, the blood begins to stagnate in the legs, the veins expand under pressure and the valves no longer close as tightly as they should. This causes some of the blood to flow down, becoming even more stagnant and putting even more pressure on the veins, dilating them. The blood flow slows down and the lymph gradually penetrates the vessel walls. Edema appears and we feel heaviness in the legs. If you do not start treatment at this stage, the disease will progress.

The impaired function of the venous valves is not restored. Initially, a blue vascular network appears on the legs. Then nodules form on the veins - blood stagnates and thickens in them, from which blood clots then form. This is called thrombophlebitis. It is very dangerous: a blood clot that breaks loose and leaks from such a knot is a high risk of stroke or heart attack.

Most commonly, varicose veins are inherited. It also happens to those who are exposed to static loads, for example, when you are constantly "on your feet" (salespeople in the store) or constantly sitting (any office worker). In addition, varicose veins can occur due to injuries, chronic vitamin and mineral deficiencies, hormonalChanges (pregnancy, menopause), obesity or overweight, diabetes, heavy lifting, frequent walking in high heels occur.

How to get rid of varicose veins

Sometimes, to prevent the appearance of varicose veins, just walking is enough. According to WHO standards, that's about 10, 000 steps a day, which isn't that much. If you are at risk (that is, you have this problem in your family), you need to see a phlebologist, use compression stockings, try not to gain excess weight, limit the static load on your legs, wear comfortable shoes, take a course ofVenotonics ( only on the recommendation of a doctor), which strengthens the walls of blood vessels and reduces inflammation.

The vascular network can be removed with the help of injections of sclerosing agents. They are injected into small vessels, causing their artificial inflammation and causing them to "stick together". The procedure is practically painless and lasts no more than 10 minutes.

The enlargement of large veins is treated with endovascular laser coagulation (EVLT for short). This is a relatively new method that has been around for about 20 years. Thanks to him, vascular surgeons could almost completely dispense with operations in favor of minimally invasive interventions. Under anesthesia and ultrasound control, a wafer-thin laser is inserted into the vein - as thick as a fishing line. The laser beam acts on the inner wall of the vein and coagulates it along its entire length, after which it simply closes over time. The entire process is fully automatic - the laser and the ultrasonic sensor move by themselves. The procedure takes about 40 minutes. A special compression stocking is then pulled over the leg, which must be worn for three days without being undressed. After the procedure, the patient is not restricted in his movement and can go home independently. The effect can be observed in a few days.