Chronic Venous Insufficiency

Varicose veins are abnormal dilation of the leg veins. These veins develop when faulty valves in the veins allow for blood to pool in the leg veins with blood flowing in the reverse direction. 

What is a varicose vein?

  • Varicose veins are enlarged veins most often found in the legs. These veins develop when faulty valves in the veins allow blood to pool in the leg veins. These veins can appear enlarged, swollen, twisting and blue or purple in color. Patients may experience symptoms such as aching, heaviness, fatigue in the legs, swelling in the ankles, calves or thighs, and spider veins. Some patients with advanced disease may experience skin discoloration, itching and pain in the legs as well as venous wounds which may have delayed healing.
Who is at risk?
  • Female sex
  • Pregnancy
  • Increased weight
  • Smoking
What does the research say?
  • Minimally invasive endovenous therapies are as effective as surgery
  • Endovenous therapies have a 98% initial success rate
  • Nonsurgical therapies may have faster recovery times than surgery
Symptoms Of Chronic Venous Insufficiency
  • Aching or throbbing leg pain
  • Leg heaviness/fatigue/aching
  • Skin discoloration
  • Skin ulcers
  • Leg swelling
Treatment

If you and your healthcare provider determine that you have Chronic Venous Insufficiency, it is a good idea to discuss the various treatment options available, including Endovenous Treatment.

Thermal Ablation

  • Thermal ablation includes laser ablation or radiofrequency ablation
  • Minimally invasive procedure in which a leg vein is accessed using a small needle under direct ultrasound visualization. A catheter is advanced in the affected vein. Laser or radio waves are transmitted through the catheter to close the affected vein.

Sclerotherapy

Minimally invasive procedure in which the abnormally functioning vein is accessed using a small needle under direct ultrasound visualization. A catheter is advanced in the affected vein. A sclerosing agent is infused to close the affected vein.

Venaseal Closure (special medical glue)

This is a novel minimally invasive treatment offered at SPVC. The abnormally functioning vein is accessed with a small needle under ultrasound guidance. A catheter is then advanced into the vein. A special glue is then applied through the length of the vein. This method offers very high success rates, provides the fastest recovery and is essentially painless. The procedure is not yet covered by some insurance companies. 

Benefits & Risks

You may be a candidate if:

  • You have swelling of legs worsening throughout the day
  • You have dilation of leg veins
  • You have skin color changes or ulceration of the lower legs

Key Advantages

Endovenous treatments are a safe treatment option and like other minimally invasive procedures have significant advantages over open surgery.

Benefits

  • Extensive research demonstrating treatment effectiveness 
  • Same day procedure
  • Local anesthesia
  • Short recovery time
  • Promotes and speeds venous wound healing

Potential Risks

Although complications of endovascular therapies are rare, any medical procedure carries some degree of risk. Despite the low risk factor, it is important to understand the potential complications associated with endovenous treatments. These include: 

  • Bruising
  • Blood clot development in the deep veins
  • Skin discoloration
Other Treatments

Medical Treatments

Compression stockings are a mainstay of varicose vein treatment. The stockings compress the legs and the leg veins to reduce the backflow of blood towards the feet. 

Surgical Treatments

Surgical treatments including ligation and stripping are rarely used for treatment after the development of endovenous therapies. Surgery may require multiple incisions to remove and ligate the affected veins.