Get Your Legs Spring Ready

Even before winter releases it icy grasp, our minds shift to spring.  We begin dreaming of days at the park, lazy afternoons lounging around the pool, cruising around Lake Marting in a pontoon boat or evenings spent firing up the barbecue.  Retailers stock their shelves with shorts, tops, sundresses, swimsuits and sandals.  With spring weather just around the corner, now is the time to get you legs ready for shorts and swim suit season.  With March being National DVT(Deep-Vein Thrombosis) Awareness Month, if you have any of the symptoms mentioned in this article, consider having a screening with an ultrasound and exam to determine your options.

The veins in you legs carry blood back to your heart.  They have one-way valves that keep blood from flowing backward.  If you have chronic venous insufficiency (CVI), the valves don't work like they should and some of the blood travels back down into your legs.  That causes bloot to pool in the veins.

Causes

A blood clot in a deep vein in your leg (called deep vein thrombosis) can damage a valve.  If you don't exercise, that can cause the CVI too.  So can sitting or standing for long periods of time which raises pressure in your veins and may weaken the valve.

Women are more likely than men to get CVI.  Your chances also might be higher if you are:

• Obese
• Over age 50
• Pregnant or have been pregnant more than once
• From a family with a history of blood clots
• A smoker

Symptoms

You may notice these things in your legs:

• Swelling or heaviness, especially in the lower leg and ankle
• Pain
• Itchiness
• Varicose veins (twisted, enlarged veins close to the surface of the skin)
• Skin that looks like leather

Without treatment, the pressure and swelling can burst the tiny blood vessels in your legs call capillaries.  That could turn your skin reddish-brown, especially near the ankles.  This can lead to swelling and ulcers.  These ulcers are tough to heal.  They are also more likely to get infected, which can cause more problems.

If you have any of the symptoms of CVI, talk to one of our surgeons at Surgical Clinic, PC.  The sooner you treat it, the less likely you are to get ulcers.

Diagnosis

Your doctor will take your medical history.  Then they will check the blood flow in your legs with a test called a vascular or duplex ultrasound.

Sometimes, you may need X-rays or specifics scans to check for other causes of your leg swelling.

Treatment

The main goal is to control swelling and prevent leg ulcers.  Your doctor may suggest a combinations of treatments based on your age, symptoms, and other factors.  Some options to help manage CVI include:

Lifestyle changes such as:

• Compression stockings-help compress the veins and control backward blood flow
• Exercise-increases venous blood flow
• Medications

Medical Procedures:

• Sclerotherapy-injections to scar small veins
• Endovenous thermal ablation-to close the trunk vein with faulty valves

Surgery:

• Ligation-The vein is tied off
• Vein Bypass-Only the most severe cases

If interested in setting up an appointment to get ready for the spring, please contact Surgical Clinic, PC...When you need expert surgical care, close to home.