Varicose veins and spider veins... are some of the most unwelcome signs of aging.
They are attributed to many things including lengthy standing or sitting at work, being overweight and lack of exercise.
They show up sometimes during pregnancy and can also be hereditory.
Most women could probably put up with the fact that varicose veins can be uncomfortable even painful but on top of that that they look unsightly and put years on us.
Question is, why do we get them and what can we do?
It helps to understand that the main job of veins is to transport blood from our extremeties back to the heart. In the case of our legs the blood has to flow upwards against gravity. This is made possible by muscle contractions and one way valves. When the valves in the legs become weak they don't close properly and blood can flow back to the legs.
Over time the veins will become dilated and become what we know as varicose veins. Unfortunately veins cannot be repaired. In nearly all cases the problem will not improve but get gradually worse.
The good news is due to groundbreaking developements in this area of medicine there are solutions which don't involve surgery.
Two of the minimally invasive treatments are EVLT and VNUS
Endo Venus Laser Treatment uses a thin laser fibre inserted into the incompetent or varicose vein which is then destroyed where it lies.
VNUS Closure uses radio energy delivered through a fine instrument inside the varicose vein to heat and destroy the vein walls.
Below is a short but most informative video of the procedure.
Both these procedures use ultra sound imaging to first accurately map the anatomy of the veins. That is, where the veins are, what they look like, how they are working and what is joined to what. This is important to make sure that no reflux is left undetected as this would cause a recurrence of the problem.
Until now traditional vein treatment was surgery to remove the incompetent veins under general anaesthesia. Side effects were often bruising, scars, risk of infection and weeks of down time.
These non invasive vein treatments can be carried out in about 45 minutes. You can go back to your normal activities almost immediately although you will need to wear compression stockings for about two weeks.
A check up usually takes place about 4 to 6 weeks later. If there are any tiny spider veins still visible these can be treated on the spot with Sclerotherapy. A procedure in which a solution is injected into the tiny veins to cause them to perish. In all of these procedures it is good to know that vein removal will not affect blood flow as other veins simply take over.
Depending on where you live, these treatments may not be covered under all health insurance plans. I have read however that this situation could improve soon as Doctors involved in this kind of work are keen to adopt these methods for obvious reasons.
There are vein clinics everywhere and the prices are reasonable. The benefits on all counts are surely worth it. Get lovely legs with Anti Aging in Action.
