According to statistics, varicose veins on the legs in the stronger sex are about 3 times less common than in women. Nevertheless, everyone is susceptible to this disease, including men.
According to phlebologists and vascular surgeons, there is no fundamental difference between varicose veins in men and women, but unfortunately the former seek help much later, when the disease subsides. is developed and is much less treatable. The article will focus on the features of the course of the disease in men, as well as methods of dealing with it.
The influence of heredity and bad habits on the development of varicose veins
First of all, it should be understood that varicose veins or varicose veins in medical practice are called a pathology accompanied by deformation of the venous vessels. In this case, the latter expand, stretch, their walls thin and the valve system ceases to cope with its functions. The consequences of the progression of the pathological process are as follows:
- Stagnation of blood in the veins, respectively, increased venous pressure.
- The violation of blood circulation is accompanied by deterioration of lymphatic outflow.
- Vascular nodules, also called spider veins, appear.
- Vascular rupture and appearance of hematomas.
- Occurrence of trophic ulcers.
- Increased risk of thrombophilia.
By studying the etiology of varicose veins, doctors have come to the conclusion that the disease is more likely to develop due to a genetic predisposition. However, the hereditary factor does not concern the varicose veins themselves, we are talking about a predisposition to a weakness of the valve system, as a result of which the venous valves weaken and wear out faster. This process is the cause of impaired blood circulation in the vascular bed and, as a result, the development of congestion, deformation of the veins, that is, very varicose veins.
In addition, bad habits, among which smoking and alcohol are in the first place, play an important role in the patient history. The abuse of tobacco and alcoholic products negatively affects the functioning of the cardiovascular system, as well as the condition of blood vessels and even blood composition. Referring again to the harsh statistics, both habits are more likely to be men, it is this fact that places smoking and alcohol dependence at the top of the list of reasons for the development of varicose veins.
However, the two reasons described are not the only ones, there are several other factors considered most likely in the list of causes of the pathology:
- Excessive stress on the legs due to professional activities (cooks, surgeons, etc. ), overweight, excessive physical exertion due to sport or all the same professional activities (loaders, builders, etc. )
- The coin has a downside, varicose veins can be triggered by lack of effort, or rather a sedentary lifestyle or just sedentary. If we proceed from this point of view, drivers, office workers, as well as people who for other reasons move little, including unwillingness, are susceptible to disease;
- Taking into account the fact of smoking and hereditary predisposition, one of the serious and very common causes are various diseases in which blood clotting is impaired.
As for hormonal disturbances, wearing uncomfortable shoes and the like, they are more inherent in women, for the same reasons (due to the greater number of triggers), women suffer from varicose veins more often.
The main symptoms of varicose veins
As for the clinical picture of the disease, a lot depends on the stage of its progression, as well as a number of individual factors and causes of varicose veins. However, there are a number of symptoms that men experience most often:
- The initial stage of development of varicose veins rarely bothers the patient. There may be a slight fatigue in the legs, worse in the evening, feelings of tightness or compression, slight swelling. In most cases, men do not pay attention to such phenomena and in vain, as the disease progresses and over time the symptoms become more pronounced and cause more problems.
- As the disease process progresses, veins begin to appear under the skin. Initially, these are separate protruding vascular networks and hypertrophied veins, which are then completed by vascular "asterisks". The more the disease develops, the more obvious this clinical sign becomes, in the later stages of the development of the disease, the veins swell under the skin, form nodules, and the risk of trophic ulcers increases.
- Unpleasant bursting sensations, a feeling of heaviness in the legs, as well as puffiness that previously appeared in the late afternoon or at the end of the working day is increasingly felt. Over time, the discomfort turns into systematic pain, spreading along the vessels affected by varicose veins.
- In places where the enlarged veins and the vascular network are clearly visible, itching appears on the skin.
- Cramps, most commonly affecting the muscle of the foot or calf, can also affect the night.
Important to remember!All the described clinical signs of varicose veins tend to increase in the evening, but this is precisely due to fatigue. In other words, the symptoms also become more intense with increased physical exertion.
Stages of venous disease in humans
As mentioned earlier, the symptomatology, and in addition, the patient's state of health and methods of treatment of varicose veins, strongly depend on the degree of disease progression. In total, there are three stages in the development of pathology:
- Compensatory or mild- in this case, the symptoms are less intense, and the patient himself hardly complains about anything. Already at the first stage, slightly protruding vessels may appear on the legs, but men do not pay attention to this.
- Moderate- this stage of the disease is also called subcompensatory. The veins are more clearly visible on the surface of the skin, but their magnification and deformation can still be considered insignificant, as can the pressure inside the vessel. At this stage, other symptoms intensify, edema, a feeling of fatigue are more and more often disturbing, painful sensations appear for the first time.
- Stage of decompensation- the most severe form, when varicose veins reach their peak. There is severe swelling, severe pain that can bother you throughout the day, the veins protrude sharply from the surface of the skin and change. At this stage, vascular nodes are formed, excessively increased blood pressure leads to damage to the venous walls, and hematomas appear. In particularly advanced cases, trophic ulcers and eczema occur. At the third stage, conservative methods of treatment are absolutely powerless, the patient needs surgery, the specificity of which is chosen by the doctor.
Treatment of varicose veins
As with symptoms, the principles of treatment depend directly on the progression of varicose veins. It is important to understand here that conservative therapy pays off mainly in the first, sometimes in the second stage of the development of the disease, otherwise the methods of conservative treatment mainly limit the disease, but do not provide the opportunity to completely get rid of the disease. varicose veins. Nevertheless, a wide range of methods for treating the pathology should be considered.
Conservative therapy
For treatment with conservative methods, an integrated approach is very important, which mainly involves dietary adjustments and lifestyle changes.
In terms of nutrition, it is important to limit the use of junk food, fatty and fried foods, candy in large quantities, to minimize salty, spicy and acidic foods, as all this contributes to the retention ofwater in the body and obstructs lymphatic drainage.
When it comes to adjusting your lifestyle, you should try to move as much as possible without straining your legs. Play light sports, take regular walks, if you have to sit a lot at work, do an hourly warm-up. It is also very important to exclude bad habits, to stop smoking and to limit alcohol consumption as much as possible.
Drug treatment
Without the use of certain drugs, complete treatment is impossible. Therefore, contacting a phlebologist, a specialist can prescribe drugs from the following groups:
- Anticoagulants - change the composition of the blood, reducing its viscosity, which helps improve blood circulation and prevents the formation of blood and lymph stagnation.
- Venotonic - as the name suggests, drugs in this group improve vascular tone. In turn, it also helps to improve blood circulation, but it is based on a different principle of action.
- As a symptomatic treatment, ointments from the category of NSAIDs are prescribed, which reduce painful sensations and stop the inflammatory process, and also prescribe special ointments for varicose veins, eliminating edema and other symptoms.
- Also, as part of conservative treatment, it is necessary to wear compression underwear, this prevents the progression of varicose veins and improves the patient's condition in general.
Surgical treatments
If conservative treatment does not give the expected results or the disease has progressed too much, a decision is made on surgical intervention, in this case one of the types of operations is selected:
- Sclerotherapy- a substance (usually in the form of a foam) is injected into a vein, which sticks to the walls of the vessel, excluding it from circulation. Over time, this vessel is removed, is replaced by connective tissue.
- Phlebectomy- a full-fledged operation, during which the anastomosis of a vein is clamped and the subsequent excision of the affected area is performed. This method is the most effective and at the same time radical, since it involves an incision, the imposition of words and a long period of rehabilitation.
- Miniflebectomyis a variant of phlebectomy, which is performed mainly on small vessels. A puncture is made in the skin, through which part of the vein is extracted using a special surgical instrument for further dissection. The operation is painless, the puncture heals quickly and no rehabilitation is necessary.
- Laser coagulation- a method similar to sclerotherapy, but instead of introducing a special composition into the lumen of a vessel, a thin catheter equipped with a laser is immersed in it. By means of thermal action, a sclerosis effect is created, due to which the vessel also adheres.