Preventive Vein Care: How to Protect Your Legs for Life

Center For Advanced Vein Care help treat pain, reduce varicose veins, prevent future problems and improve your quality of life. Treatments include self-care, compression stockings and procedures.

Varicose veins are swollen, rope-like blood vessels in your leg. They develop when poorly functioning one-way valves allow blood to reverse and pool in the veins, causing them to stretch and dilate (elongate). These veins are typically blue, purple or red and may be painful and tender. Varicose veins can also cause itching, throbbing or burning. The exact cause is unknown, but it may be related to genetics, pregnancy, menopause, standing or sitting for long periods of time, and certain health conditions.

The most common symptoms of varicose veins are itching, aching or burning in your legs and calf muscles, swelling of the legs or ankles, and redness or bruises. You might also have a heavy feeling in your legs, and you may have a darkening or bulging appearance of the veins. Your doctor may do a physical exam of your legs and feet, or you might need a medical imaging test called a venous Doppler ultrasound. This is a painless test that uses sound waves to see how blood flows through your veins and how well your valves function.

You can often prevent varicose veins by raising your legs above the level of your heart to promote good circulation and avoiding tight clothing that restricts blood flow. You can take breaks from sitting or standing to walk around, if possible, and change position frequently. You can also drink plenty of water to support healthy blood flow and avoid drinking caffeine or alcohol, which can dehydrate you. Some natural remedies can also help, including horse chestnut extract (Aesculus hippocastanum L.), which has been shown to reduce symptoms of chronic venous insufficiency, and witch hazel, which is an anti-inflammatory that can be applied topically or taken in capsule form.

If lifestyle changes and compression stockings don’t relieve your symptoms, you may need a procedure or surgery to treat your varicose veins. There are several types of procedures, but most of them are outpatient treatments.

EVLT (endovenous laser treatment): This procedure is the most common treatment for larger varicose veins. Your doctor will numb the area with local anesthesia and use ultrasound to guide a thin tube (catheter) into the affected vein. The catheter is positioned close to the diseased vein and is heated with radiofrequency or laser energy. This causes the vein to close and collapse, and your body will eventually re-route blood to other healthier veins.

Ambulatory phlebectomy: This surgical procedure involves making 1 cut in your upper leg near the groin and another lower down your leg, at your knee or ankle. Your surgeon then finds the varicose vein and ties it off to stop blood flowing through it. Then, your surgeon removes the varicose vein through small cuts.

Sclerotherapy is a treatment where your provider injects a chemical (sclerosing agent) into the varicose veins to cause them to close and shrink. Your provider will choose the type of injection and its concentration based on the size and location of the vein. The treatment takes about 30 to 45 minutes, and you will lie down on your back or side. You might feel some pinching sensations when the needle is inserted. Your provider will also do a test injection to check for a reaction.

Additional Resources