A Huge Secret About Varicose Vein Removal in Pittsburgh

A Huge Secret About Varicose Vein Removal

Most people are aware that laser or radiofrequency has revolutionized the treatment of varicose veins.

But what is a shock to most people in Pittsburgh is that laser is not enough and almost always an additional type of treatment is needed to complete the entire treatment of your varicose veins.

Laser and radiofrequency successfully replaced the stripping operation.

Surgeons, hospitals, and general anesthesia were no longer required. Any doctor could legally treat veins even though they had no training in venous disease or varicose veins.

One of those additional types of treatment is called ambulatory phlebectomy or just phlebectomy for short.

Phlebectomy is the removal of varicose veins through needle holes or mini incisions.

The alternative to phlebectomy is sclerotherapy or the injection of medicine into the varicose veins to make them shrink up and be absorbed by your body.

The laser can only treat part of your problem if you have varicose veins.

Laser can only remove the saphenous vein which is the root of the problem.

These saphenous veins branch off into the twisted, ropey varicose veins that you see just under your skin. Varicose veins are branches that come off of the trunk of a tree.

The saphenous vein is analogous to the trunk of the tree. The laser cannot be used to treat these twisted varicose veins because the laser fiber is stiff and can only be inserted into the straight saphenous vein.

The laser fiber cannot make it past all the twists and bends in the varicose veins themselves.

That’s where phlebectomy or injections come into the picture.

For larger varicose veins, phlebectomy is often preferable.

If medicine were to be injected into the very large varicose veins, it would get diluted out by the huge volume inside these varicosities.

That would make it difficult or impossible to close the entire length or mass in huge veins.

Some symptoms that are commonly associated with this condition include:

1. Swelling of the leg
2. Heaviness of the leg
3. Aching of the leg
4. Pain in the leg
5. Leg fatigue
6. Restless legs
7. Itching
8. Cramping
9. Burning
10. Eczema

As the condition worsens, the skin will lose its elasticity. The skin texture becomes tight and hardened. The skin appears brown and leathery. This can result in scarring around the ankles called atrophie blanche.

Later the skin may crack if you scratch it. Crusting or weeping of the skin can be a result.

Venous ulcers or sores in the skin around the ankles are the last stage of this condition.

These types of ulcers are very difficult to treat and often recur.

They occur in 1% of the population.

They result in a loss of income and cause 12.5% of people to retire early.

Varicose vein ulcers are often painful and require months to heal in many cases.

Injections are also useful to treat smaller varicose veins.

With the smaller varicose veins - especially when there are multiple branches - injections may be preferred.

Phlebectomy is often very tedious and time consuming. However, sclerotherapy can result in hyperpigmentation that is unsightly for many months.

An experienced vascular surgeon who is well versed in all of these techniques will be able design a specific treatment plan using a combination of these treatments.

It's not just grannies who get varicose veins.

Doctors perform over 550,000 varicose vein procedures around the world each year. The number of procedures in the U.S. has gone up 435% since 2002.

Over 50 million Americans have varicose veins. Foam, glue, and mechanical-chemical rotating wires are the latest and greatest and all do the job.

Varicose vein disease is complex.

If you already have the genetic predisposition to be susceptible to varicose veins sometime in your life, there are risk factors that can speed up this problem. Varicose veins can occur earlier in life and be aggravated by the following factors.

1. Obesity

Being overweight increases your risks of developing varicose veins. Obesity also increases the risk of recurrence. To be more precise, if you are overweight, new varicose veins will recur faster after treatment.

2. Pregnancy

Becoming pregnant results in an increase in your blood volume. The extra blood is stored in your veins. That results in them dilating. The dilatation and extra blood volume causes pressure on the valves.

3. Abdominal pressure

(Tourniquet effect) Imagine someone tied a tourniquet around your waist preventing the blood from returning to your heart.

4. Standing and sitting for long periods on a daily basis

If the valves are not torn, the dilated veins may return to normal after the baby is delivered. Pregnancy also involves an increase in hormones that can dilate the veins. Finally, the baby compresses the vena cava that acts like a tourniquet inside the abdomen.

Exercise alone almost never works long term to get rid of your varicose veins.

That’s the huge secret or shock that most people don’t know when they see TV advertising or marketing claiming quick and painless varicose vein treatments.

Conclusion

This is the bottom line.

Laser and radiofrequency, the current standards of care, may be on their way out soon.

Newer and improved technologies will make our lives better and more productive.

Adjunctive procedures like phlebectomy and sclerotherapy are often necessary to completely treat your varicose vein problem.

Some Pittsburgh vein center franchises are only about the profit.

Unnecessary procedures and unnecessary ultrasound testing of veins are rampant.

1. I see patients routinely as a second opinion who suspect this.

2. Some doctors have changed medical specialties. They are getting into veins for all the wrong reasons.

3. Check and recheck credentials, experience and board certifications. This will ensure optimal results when you have your veins treated.

4. Be skeptical. Do your homework and research the best varicose vein doctors in Pittsburgh on the internet.