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

Varicose veins are a disease accompanied by the expansion of the 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 nodes appear, they expand, forming blood stasis, especially they are seen 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 the frequent use of alcoholic beverages. Alcohol itself causes vasodilation, but if abused, it will lead to negative consequences.

alcohol consumption as a cause of varicose veins

Girls who enjoy sitting cross-legged for hours are also at risk of developing the disease. In this position of the legs, blood stagnation occurs, which leads to disruption of the natural blood supply to the whole body.

The main factors

What are the causes of varicose veins?

  1. Inheritance. 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 at the end of gestation. At first, the disease does not manifest itself, but after childbirth, all the signs of the disease are on the face. The stress that women endure during childbirth strongly affects the position of the veins.
  4. Overloading the body with physical muscular work provides all conditions for the development of the disease. This is common in athletes who train. It is necessary to be able to properly regulate the load on the human body.
  5. People with sedentary jobs, especially office workers, are prone to the development of varicose veins.
  6. Constant standing is no better - it can also give rise to disease.
  7. Women who often use contraceptives with many hormones are at risk.
  8. Disease of the hip joint or previous trauma can give rise to the development of the disease.
  9. Overweight people have varicose veins more often. They have a constant load on the venous system.
  10. Tanning, frequent saunas and alcohol consumption 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, as well as a normal diet. In this case, there is a high probability of avoiding varicose veins.

How do varicose veins on the legs manifest themselves? The first signs from the photo

the doctor examines the legs with varicose veins

As a rule, at an early stage, various symptoms of varicose veins may appear, by 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 abruptly, then we are talking about a neglected disease.

Early manifestations of varicose veins

As a rule, it is not so easy to identify the initial stage of varicose veins. This is due to the fact that varicose veins have a huge number of symptoms and few people pay attention to them. People ignore swelling and leg fatigue. Especially it concerns pregnant women: varicose veins are often not given particular importance and it is believed that during pregnancy this complication is quite normal.

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

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

It is worth considering the first symptoms of varicose veins that can be seen during the diagnosis when contacting a specialist: leg fatigue after little physical exertion or pain after wearing heavy shoes, often women who wear heels face this problem, the presence of pain, burning sensation in the legs in the evening, increased fatigue, deterioration of working capacity. If the disease is neglected, the first sign of varicose veins is ulcers.

Diagnostics

phlebeurism

From the very beginning of the detection of a disease such as varicose veins, it is necessary to probe the veins to determine pain, tension, density, the presence of sections of the vein that have been affected, swelling and inflammation within 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 must take a standing position so that the veins fill as much as possible with blood. It is better if the diagnosis is carried out in the evening - this will allow the affected areas to acquire a more delineated outline. With the help of palpation and a superficial examination, the specialist can obtain the very first information about the state of the patient's vessels. After the preliminary examination has been carried out, the second stage of the diagnosis of varicose veins begins - the examination with the help of ultrasound.

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

What tests are done if varicose veins are suspected?

The first test is blood sampling for hormones, biochemistry and hemoglobin. A general blood test is also performed, its group and the return, the infectious group are determined.

Next, the patient has to pass urine for analysis to determine hemoglobin, sugar, ketone bodies as well, and this analysis will also determine the acetone and ammonia in the patient's urine.

Ultrasound procedure

With the help of ultrasound or ultrasound examination of the veins, it is possible to examine the venous system from the inside and find the foci of the disease. This procedure takes no more than half an hour, while the patient is in a horizontal position.

Treatment

This disease is very dangerous and spread all over 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, it is necessary to consult a phlebologist, after the examination he will make the correct diagnosis, you cannot cure this disease on your own. In the event that timely treatment is not taken, patients can 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 treatment in combination with drugs, it is necessary to take tinctures of nettle, acacia. These tinctures are drunk three times a day before meals, it is useful to make fresh foot baths from decoctions of burdock, nettle and birch leaves.

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

Treatment with drugs

Used drugs that have a tonic effect on the veins and are sold in pharmacies in the form of 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, in different stages of varicose veins, a different compression of linen is prescribed. You can buy such medicated tights in specialized stores.

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

Taking medication does not completely cure varicose veins, but it removes some of the symptoms and facilitates the course of the disease. In addition, thanks to the use of various drugs, the risk of manifestation of a disease such as thrombophlebitis is reduced. This disease occurs due to the lack of treatment for varicose veins, is treated only in the hospital, and surgery is often required.

In addition, I often use lymphatic drainage massage for the treatment, thanks to its use in the general course of therapy, the patient's lymphatic outflow in the legs improves, edema will decrease, fatigue and heaviness in the legs will disappear. The only negative is the effect of the massage. It will only last two months, but then the massage course can be extended.

Sclerotherapy

sedentary work as a cause of varicose veins

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

This drug works in such a way that the upper layer of the affected vein is destroyed, then it merges. Then, after 1. 5 years, this vein dissolves in the human body, other veins begin to perform its working functions.

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

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

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

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

The consequences of varicose veins

leg pain with varicose veins

The consequence of the disease is not a good omen, this is an aesthetic problem and associated with other health problems that have arisen due to varicose veins. The women most affected are those who want their legs to look nice and slim. With the onset of the disease, this is impossible, but the aesthetic 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 an unpleasant itch. Aching pain occurs due to insufficient oxygen and other trace elements that cannot pass to the affected area. The cause of the pain is damage to the large veins. But the small vessels also give unpleasant sensations.

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

Dermatitis - a consequence of varicose veins

The worst consequence is dermatitis. The disease develops in places of varicose veins. With such a disease, a person suffers from constant itching, the formation of wounds and the appearance of various rashes. The onset of dermatitis can lead to thrombophlebitis. When a blood clot appears, it is necessary to urgently seek help from a specialist. If this is not done, the consequences for a person can be very serious. Therefore, in no case should it be delayed.