Do you have spider veins? You might have a debilitating disease
Your spider veins could be the first sign of a condition that, if left untreated, could lead to irreversible skin damage, blood clots, and open wounds.
Vein disease affects over 30 million Americans but only 1.9 million ever receive the right diagnosis and treatment every year, reports the Society for Vascular Surgery. The chronic condition develops when the valves in leg veins stop working, which allows blood to flow backward and pool in the lower leg veins. Often people think their spider veins are simply cosmetic, but as more blood stagnates over time this causes leg symptoms including heaviness, swelling, burning, aching, pain fatigue, itching, cramping, restless legs, dark spots on the skin, and eventually open wounds.
“Treatment changes people’s lives dramatically,” said Rebecca Luther, a nurse practitioner at the Ozark Regional Vein Center. “The big problem is so many patients chalk up their symptoms to things like advancing age, lack of fitness, and weight gain, without realizing they actually have vein disease,” she said.
You should ask yourself: “Do I need to sit down during my work day because of my legs swelling or aching?” “Do I miss out on activities I love to do because my legs feel painful or heavy?” “Do I have burning or restless legs that affect my sleep or my daily routine?”
You should also consider your risk factors such as being over 40 years old, multiple pregnancies, female gender, family genetic history, heavy lifting, smoking, prolonged standing, and obesity or excess weight.
You should understand the typical progression of vein disease. Your abnormal veins can grow with time into varicose veins, which are bigger, bulging and bluish in color. Next comes the edema stage in which your lower legs can swell so much by the end of each day that your shoes may not even fit. If still left untreated, the disease sometimes reaches a pigmentation stage that creates dark spots around your ankle. At this phase, your skin is dying as stagnant blood blocks fresh blood from reaching the affected area. Next, you move to the lipodermatosclerosis stage, which is a severe hardening of the skin. Lastly, you may even develop venous ulcers; they’re painful open leg wounds usually found on the inner part of the ankles. (To learn more about the progression, refer to the CEAP classification system).
There are treatments to help repair an ulcer but these often require months to heal and frequently antibiotics or other wound care treatments. Afterwards, you’ll experience scarring. Eventually, the cycle will often repeat itself if veins are left untreated.
You should visit a specialist right away if you suspect vein disease. In one easy visit, your physician will put together a treatment plan based on ultrasound test results, family history, lifestyle factors, and a history and physical that focuses on your symptoms.
You’ll start with conservative therapies for about three months (since most insurance carriers require this) that won’t heal the disease but can improve symptoms temporarily. Strategies include exercise, leg elevation, compression stockings, anti-inflammatory drugs and the Unna boot (for ulcers).
You’ll move onto therapies that close the incompetent veins themselves, if you choose. The type of therapy (sclerotherapy injections, Varithena, thermal ablation, or Venaseal) depends on the type of vein that needs mending, but all the procedures are noninvasive. They require nothing more than a local anesthesia and can treat your reflux disease, eliminating symptoms and halting progression indefinitely.
“I just saw a patient crying tears of joy at her one-month checkup because she could stand long enough to cook her family Christmas dinner for the first time in 10 years,” said Luther, “We see that all the time here…tears of joy.”
To get your life back, visit Dr. Kevin Haney’s Ozark Regional Vein Center in Rogers, Arkansas today. His profound experience and knowledge, with a great medical staff like Luther, will help you return to the lifestyle you love and the activities you’ve missed.