Varicose veins are characterized by uneven dilation of the lumen of the legs, the appearance of nodes on them and an increase in their length. The disease develops gradually, characterized by a chronic course.
Women experience varicose veins three times more often than men. And among the representatives of the stronger sex, those who love sports with maximum load distribution on their feet are susceptible to this disease: soccer, tennis, basketball.
Why varicose veins occur
There are three types of veins in the tissues of the legs: superficial, deep, that connect the shallow and deep veins. Each vein is a hollow tube through which blood flows from the tissues of the legs to the heart. Veins have no muscle cells, so the veins cannot contract to push blood upward. This task is performed by the skeletal muscles of the leg. And the valves are inside the veins - they close the valves at the moment of skeletal muscle contraction, preventing blood from flowing backwards. Each muscle contraction "pushes" the blood higher.
When the valve caps are not tightly closed, a part of the blood flows backwards, accumulating in the veins, pressing against the vessel walls, causing them to stretch. The venous lumen dilates, the walls of the veins dilate. This is the beginning of varicose veins.
Onset of disease:
- Hereditary - with an congenital deficiency of collagen fibers, the vein walls are less elastic and easily dilated.
- blood stasis in the leg veins for overweight people who are overweight, wearing high heels over 3-4 cm, standing for a long time for people of certain occupations - hairdressers, salesmen, headkitchen, lecturer or long sitting in office worker.
- Changes in hormonal levels: Increased levels of progesterone in the blood of a pregnant woman cause the walls to soften and dilate, so the risk of varicose veins during pregnancy increases significantly.
The first signs of varicose veins - how not to miss
The time when spider veins, also known as spider veins - reticular varicose veins - appear on the skin of the legs is considered the alarm signal of early stage varicose veins. This is not a cosmetic defect but the beginning of the disease!
At the same time or after a while, a second group of signs joins - a heavy feeling in the leg, which spreads in the leg after a long time standing or sitting in a chair. As a person begins to walk, the feeling of heaviness decreases: the skeletal muscles push the stagnant blood higher and the elongation of the venous wall decreases.
A further development of the disease is manifested by edema in the leg - these are sock marks, thickening on one leg relative to the other when examining the image.
Then, calf muscle pain, rapid fatigue while walking, skin dryness and loss of pigmentation, dilated veins protruding and forming genital sores.
When to see the vascular surgeon?
When appearing spider veins and the first asterisk, you should consult a specialist, and if necessary, conduct an ultrasound of the lower limb vein and perform surgery. varicose vein. The earlier the diagnosis of varicose veins, the higher the probability of preventing it at an early stage.