Varicose veins: first signs, description of symptoms, causes of appearance

Varicose veins are a disease accompanied by the expansion of subcutaneous vessels or veins located deep under the skin of the human body.

With this disease, the walls of the veins lose their elasticity, when varicose knots appear, they expand, forming blood stasis, especially on the legs of women. They are the ones who most often suffer from the disease. The disease can appear from the age of 20, but more in middle-aged women. Men also get sick, but much less often.

varicose veins in the leg

Causes

Sometimes the cause of varicose veins is frequent consumption of alcoholic beverages. Alcohol itself causes vasodilation, but if abused it will lead to negative consequences.

alcohol consumption as a cause of varicose veins

Young girls who like to sit cross-legged for hours on end are also at risk of developing the disease. In this position of the legs, blood stagnation occurs, which leads to interruptions in the natural blood supply to the whole body.

The main factors

What are the causes of varicose veins?

  1. Heredity. If the parents had weakened venous walls, this can be repeated in children.
  2. High blood pressure can be the cause of the disease. Sometimes this is due to a violation of the hormonal system.
  3. For many women, pregnancy is difficult, especially in late pregnancy. At first, the disease does not manifest itself, but after childbirth all signs of the disease are on the face. The stress that women experience during childbirth strongly affects the location of the veins.
  4. Overloading the body with physical muscle work provides all the conditions for the development of the disease. This is common in athletes who exercise. You have to be able to properly regulate the load on the human body.
  5. People with sedentary work, especially office workers, are prone to the development of varicose veins.
  6. Constantly standing is not better - it can also cause illness.
  7. Women who often use contraceptives that contain a lot of hormones are at risk.
  8. Hip joint disease or previous trauma can lead to the development of the disease.
  9. People who are overweight most often have varicose veins. They have a constant load on the venous system.
  10. Abuse of tanning, frequent saunas, and alcohol consumption all lead to the same situation.
varicose veins on the leg

Varicose veins are much easier to avoid than to cure. You just need to lead a healthy lifestyle, pay attention to good physical shape and normal diet. In this case, there is a high probability of avoiding varicose veins.

How do varicose veins appear on the legs? The first signs of the photo

the doctor examines the legs with varicose veins

As a rule, at an early stage, various symptoms of varicose veins may appear, at which time the disease is still treatable.

As a rule, people rarely think of tired legs in the evening, swelling or varicose veins. If the symptoms appear too suddenly, then we are talking about a neglected disease.

Early manifestations of varicose veins

As a rule, it is not so easy to identify the early stage of varicose veins. This is because varicose veins have a large number of symptoms and not many people pay attention to them. People ignore the swelling and tiredness of the legs. Especially this concerns pregnant women: often varicose veins are not given special importance, and it is believed that during pregnancy such a complication is quite normal.

This is because the cause of varicose veins can be considered to be too much body weight, but usually the kilograms go away after the baby appears, but it also happens that a woman who suffered from varicose veins during pregnancy cannot get rid of it. of this disease after the birth of a child. This is often due to the fact that it is the excess weight that leads to venous disease.

The first symptoms of varicose veins are easy to notice: the legs quickly begin to tire from any physical activity, numb if they stay in one position for a long time. But, as a rule, it is rare for anyone to pay attention to it, finding that the pain in the legs when crossing a long distance is normal. In winter, many attribute pain to the presence of heavy insulating shoes on their feet, while in summer the reason is heat. However, this is only an excuse, and there is no truth to it.

It is worth considering the first symptoms of varicose veins that can be observed during the diagnosis during contact with a specialist: leg fatigue after little physical exertion or pain after wearing heavy shoes, often women who wear heelsare faced with it, the presence of pain, a burning sensation in the legs in the evening, increased fatigue, deterioration of the ability to work. If the disease is neglected, the first sign of varicose veins is an ulcer.

Diagnostic

phlebeurism

Early in the detection of a disease such as varicose veins, it is necessary to probe the veins to determine pain, tension, density, the presence of affected sections of the vein, swelling and inflammation in the vein. inside them. The specialist who performs this examination is called a phlebologist. What to do at the first signs of varicose veins on the legs? First of all, it is necessary to diagnose the severity of the disease.

During the procedure, the patient should stand up straight so that the veins are filled with blood as much as possible. It is better if the diagnosis is carried out in the evening - this will allow the affected areas to acquire a more demarcated contour. With the help of palpation and a superficial examination, the specialist can obtain the very first information about the condition of the patient's vessels. After the preliminary examination is carried out, the second stage of the diagnosis of varicose veins begins - the examination with the help of an ultrasound.

Getting tests when diagnosing varicose veins is an important source of information that helps diagnose the disease correctly.

What tests are done if you suspect varicose veins?

The first test is a blood sample for hormones, biochemistry, and hemoglobin. A general blood test is also carried out, its group and rh, infectious group are determined.

After that, the patient has to pass the urine for analysis to also determine hemoglobin, sugar, ketone bodies, and this analysis will also determine the acetone and ammonia in the urine of the patient.

Ultrasound procedure

With the help of an ultrasound or ultrasound examination of the veins, you can examine the venous system from the inside and find the foci of the disease. This procedure does not take more than half an hour, while the patient is in a horizontal position.

Processing

This disease is very dangerous and widespread throughout the world, depending on the stage of the disease, different methods of treatment are used.

To treat the first signs of varicose veins in the legs, you need to visit a phlebologist, after the examination he will make the correct diagnosis, you can not treat this disease yourself. In the event that the timely treatment is not taken, the patients may die.

Methods for treating the first signs of varicose veins on the legs:

  • sclerotherapy;
  • medical treatment;
  • medicinal herbs;
  • compression underwear;
  • surgical intervention.

Traditional methods

nettle for the treatment of varicose veins

They are used only in complex treatments in combination with drugs, you need to take tinctures of nettle, acacia. These tinctures are drunk three times a day before meals, it is useful to take fresh foot baths from decoctions of burdock, nettle and birch leaves.

All the proposed herbal preparations are taken only with the permission of a doctor, it is not recommended to drink decoctions and tinctures on your own.

Treatment with medication

Used drugs that have a tonic effect on the veins and are sold in pharmacies as ointments and gels.

In order for the use of ointments to become effective, it is also recommended to wear compression underwear.

Compression underwear

This assortment includes tights, stockings, at different stages of varicose veins, different compressions of linen are prescribed. You can buy such medicated tights in specialty stores.

This underwear helps to normalize the venous flow of blood, the necessary compressive force restores the normal functioning of the veins.

Taking medication will not completely cure varicose veins, but will remove some of the symptoms and make the disease easier to progress. In addition, through the use of various drugs, the risk of the manifestation of such a disease as thrombophlebitis is reduced. This disease occurs as a result of the lack of treatment for varicose veins, it is treated only in a hospital, and often surgery is required.

In addition, for the treatment, I often use lymphatic drainage massage, thanks to its use as part of the general treatment, the patient's lymphatic flow in the legs improves, edema decreases, fatigue andheaviness of the legs disappear. The only negative point is the effect of the massage. It will only last two months, but then the massage course can be extended.

Sclerotherapy

sedentary work as the cause of varicose veins

This type of treatment is used if surgery is needed, but this procedure is different from surgery. A special drug is injected into the vein in which the thrombus is located.

This medicine works in such a way that the top layer of the affected vein is destroyed and then it sticks together. Then, after 1. 5 years, this vein dissolves in the human body, other veins begin to perform their working functions.

The drug is prescribed by a phlebologist, individual treatment is applied for each patient. The course of sclerotherapy consists of 3-6 procedures, after a period of 2-8 weeks the doctor will be able to determine how this treatment worked.

This procedure can only be done by experienced specialists, because if the procedure is performed incorrectly, the vein will restore blood flow through the sclerotic vessel and there will be no therapeutic effect.

In addition to the administration of drugs, when using this procedure, microfoam is injected into the vein. For the accuracy of this procedure, an ultrasound scanner is required, thanks to which the doctor will see on the screen the movement of the needle and the process of dispensing the drug along it.

In more difficult cases, when massage, compression underwear, drugs do not help, and the disease progresses to a more acute stage, these patients are prescribed surgeries.

The consequences of varicose veins

leg pain with varicose veins

The consequence of the disease does not bode well, it is a cosmetic problem and associated with other health problems that have arisen as a result of varicose veins. The women most affected are those who want their legs to be beautiful and slim. With the onset of the disease, it is impossible, but the cosmetic problem is not the main one. Varicose veins lead to more tangible health problems.

Most often there is pain in the legs, which is accompanied by unpleasant itching. The aching pain comes from a lack of oxygen and other trace elements that cannot pass into the affected area. The cause of the pain is damage to the large veins. But small vessels also give unpleasant sensations.

Of course, for women, a cosmetic problem is also important, but the most unpleasant consequences are swollen ankles. The pain disappears in the upper and lower legs. Even with good rest, the person will feel constant pain.

Dermatitis - a consequence of varicose veins

The worst of the consequences is dermatitis. The disease develops in places of varicose veins. With such a disease, a person suffers from constant itching, the formation of sores and the appearance of various rashes. The onset of dermatitis can lead to thrombophlebitis. When a blood clot appears, you should urgently seek help from a specialist. If this is not done, the consequences for a person can be very serious. Therefore, it should not be delayed under any circumstances.