The most common place for treatment for varicose veins is in the legs. This type of vein is often clearly visible just beneath the skin’s surface. This type of vein is quite common, and they may come with only minor complications. However, for some people they can cause considerable pain and discomfort. The job of the veins is to move blood throughout the body until it reaches the heart. Once there, the blood is pumped out to the lungs so it can get oxygenated. This newly oxygenated blood will then provide oxygen to the body tissue as it moves through the body once again. The process is repeated over and over when a person has healthy veins. However, a varicose vein sufferer may not be processing blood through the body correctly. In these cases, varicose vein repair may need to be considered.
Varicose Vein Risk Factors
While anyone can end up with this type of vein issue, in many cases heredity may play a part. Older people are more likely to develop varicose veins, as are people who are sedentary most of the time. Other potential risk factors include being overweight and pregnancy.
Options For Vein Removal
There are several different vein repair offered today. A vascular surgeron can correct most vein problems, whether they are very developed varicose veins or smaller spider veins. Sclerotherapy is one of the most common methods for vein removal. Each varicose vein is individually addressed with sclerotherapy. A sclerosing solution is injected into the vein. This solution causes significant irritation, which in turn makes the vein collapse and close itself off. Over time, the varicose vein will usually fade away completely or nearly completely. It may require multiple treatments to completely eradicate a significantly developed vein.
Ablation is another popular treatment for veins. With this treatment method, lasers are used to generate the heat needed to close a vein. This method requires a series of small incisions, usually only one per vein. An ultra fine catheter is placed in the incisions to allow the laser access. Once the laser heat is delivered, the vein will start to react right away by closing itself.
In some cases, the veins may need to be removed rather than treated in place. In such situations, the surgeon will typically make tiny incisions and then use a special tool to pull the veins free from the leg. This is usually best for veins that can’t be treated in less invasive ways.