Varicose Veins
Varicose veins of the lower limbs are so common, that many clinicians do not consider it a disease.
Our Services
Conservative
Management
The majority of patient with varicose veins can be treated effectively with
Elevation of limbs at rest
Weight control
Exercise
Smoking cessation
Compression bandages
Compression hosiery
Endovenous
Procedures
These less invasive procedures, are the preferred technique and is often considered as a first line strategy.
Catheter directed thrombolysis is only offered as an emergency procedure in selected cases for acute deep vein thrombosis
THIS PRACTICE DOES NOT OFFER ENDOVENOUS PROCEDURES FOR VARICOSE VEINS
Venous
Procedures
Standard open venous surgical procedures remove distended veins.
THIS PRACTICE DOES NOT OFFER VARICOSE VEIN SURGERY
OR
SCLEROTHERAPY
Varicose Veins
Arteries bring oxygen-rich blood from your heart to the rest of your body. Veins return oxygen-poor blood back to your heart. Varicose veins are swollen veins that you can see through your skin. They often look blue, bulging, and twisted. Left untreated, varicose veins may worsen over time. Large varicose veins can cause aching and fatigue as well as skin changes like rashes, redness, and sores. As many as 8 million South Africans, most of them women, have varicose veins. You have two kinds of veins in your legs. Superficial veins lie close to your skin. Deep veins lie in groups of muscles. Deep veins lead to the vena cava, your body's largest vein, which runs directly to your heart. Perforating veins connect superficial veins to deep veins. Varicose veins occur in the superficial veins in your legs. The blood in your leg veins must work against gravity to return to your heart. To help move blood back to your heart, your leg muscles squeeze the deep veins of your legs and feet. One-way flaps called valves in your veins keep blood flowing in the right direction. When your leg muscles contract, the valves inside your veins open. When your legs relax, the valves close. This prevents blood from flowing backward. The entire process of sending blood back to the heart is called the venous pump. When you walk and your leg muscles squeeze, the venous pump works well. But when you sit or stand, especially for a long time, the blood in your leg veins can pool and the pressure in your veins can increase. Deep veins and perforating veins are usually able to withstand short periods of increased pressures. However, if you are a susceptible individual, your veins can stretch if you repeatedly sit or stand for a long time. This stretching can sometimes weaken the walls of your veins and damage your vein valves. Varicose veins or spider veins may result. Spider veins are mild varicose veins. They look like a nest of red or blue lines just under your skin. Spider veins are not a serious medical problem, but they can be a cosmetic concern to some people.
Symptoms
If you have varicose veins, your legs may feel heavy, burning, tired, restless, or achy. Standing or sitting for too long may worsen your symptoms. You may also experience night cramps. You may notice small clusters of veins in a winding pattern on your leg, or soft, slightly tender knots of veins. Sometimes, the skin on your legs may change colour, become irritated, or even form sores. If you have severe varicose veins, you have slightly increased chances of developing deep vein thrombosis (DVT). DVT may cause sudden, severe leg swelling. DVT is a serious condition that requires immediate medical attention.
Causes
High blood pressure inside your superficial leg veins causes varicose veins. Factors that can increase your risk for varicose veins include having a family history of varicose veins, being overweight, not exercising enough, smoking, standing or sitting for long periods of time, and having DVT. Women are more likely than men to develop varicose veins. Varicose veins usually affect people between the ages of 30 and 70. Pregnant women have an increased risk of developing varicose veins, but the veins often return to normal within 1 year after childbirth. Women who have multiple pregnancies may develop permanent varicose veins.
Tests
First your physician asks you questions about your general health, medical history, and symptoms. In addition, your physician conducts a physical exam. Together these are known as a patient history and exam. Your physician will examine the texture and colour of any prominent veins. He or she may apply a tourniquet or direct hand pressure to observe how your veins fill with blood. To confirm a diagnosis of varicose veins, your physician may order a duplex ultrasound test. Duplex ultrasound uses high-frequency waves higher than human hearing can detect. Your physician uses duplex ultrasound to measure the speed of blood flow and to see the structure of your leg veins. The test can take approximately 20 minutes for each leg. Besides showing varicose veins, duplex ultrasound can help your physician decide whether your varicose veins are related to some other condition outside of the veins themselves.
Treatment Options
Conservative
The majority of patient with varicose veins can be treated effectively with
Elevation of limbs at rest
Weight control
Exercise
Smoking cessation
Compression bandages
Compression hosiery
Endovenous
Sclerotherapy
In sclerotherapy, a physician injects a chemical into the affected veins. The chemical scars the veins from the inside out. The veins can then no longer fill with blood. Blood that would normally return to the heart through these veins returns to the heart through other veins. The body will eventually absorb the veins that received the injection. This procedure can be complicated by dark discolouration of the skin, skin necrosis with the potential risk of ulcers and systemic complications including stroke and lung complications.
Ablation
Ablation uses a thin, flexible tube called a catheter inserted into a varicose vein. Tiny electrodes at the tip of the catheter heat the walls of your varicose vein and destroy the vein tissue. As with chemical sclerotherapy, your vein is then no longer able to carry blood, breaks up naturally, and is absorbed by your body.
Laser Treatment
Laser treatment is another way to treat varicose veins. Your physician inserts a tiny fibre into a varicose vein through a catheter. The fibre sends out laser energy that kills the diseased portion of your varicose vein. The vein closes and your body eventually absorbs it.
Surgery
Vein Stripping
To perform vein stripping, your physician disconnects and ties off all varicose veins associated with the saphenous vein, the main superficial vein in your leg. Your physician then removes this vein from your leg. A procedure, called small incision avulsion, can be done alone or together with vein stripping. Small incision avulsion allows your physician to remove varicose veins from your leg using hooks passed through small incisions. In a similar procedure called TIPP, your physician shines an intense light on your leg to show your veins. Once your physician locates a varicose vein, he or she passes a suction device through a tiny incision and suctions out the vein. Although these procedures sound painful, they cause relatively little pain.
NOTICE
Please note that this practice does not offer any varicose vein surgery in any shape or form
Varicose Vein Stripping
If you have any problems with any of these conditions, please contact your General Practitioner, or your Vascular Surgeon. If you live in Pretoria and have not seen a Vascular Surgeon before, you are more than welcome to contact my rooms for a formal consultation.
Gregory Weir Vascular Surgery
The purpose of this web site is to offer Dr Weir’s patients and their families access to information regarding vascular disease in general as well as specific information on certain disease processes. The information on this site does not necessarily apply to all patients with the same diagnosis. If you are not a patient of Dr Weir, please do not regard the information on this website as a substitute for a thorough assessment by a qualified Vascular Surgeon. If in doubt, consult your doctor.
CONSULTATION Rooms
Vascular & Hyperbaric Unit, Life Eugene Marais Hospital, Pretoria