To maintain physiologically correct pressure in the lower extremities, in the complex treatment and prevention of varicose veins, compression stockings are widely used today.
In medical literature, such special underwear is also called medical tights, anti-varicose veins, compression underwear or medical compression tights.
These are stockings, which are recommended by phlebologists as a treatment and prevention of various problems with the blood vessels of the legs. Compression underwear is mainly used for varicose veins, thrombosis, trophic epithelial ulcers, thrombophlebitis, lymphedema.
- The therapeutic effect of compression underwear is due to the supporting and compressing effect of the dilated vein, which contributes to the redistribution of blood flow from dilated and damaged veins to healthy veins.
- It improves tissue nutrition, increases blood circulation
- The most important thing is that such a jersey, when used correctly and correctly sized, reduces the risk of blood clots.
- And what is also important, in the absence of contraindications of compression underwear to its use, there are no side effects, it is a safe and simple method of preventingvaricose veins, keeping the veins in a natural and physiological state.
The therapeutic effect of compression tights for varicose veins?
Previously, before the large-scale production of high-quality medical linen, elastic bandages were widely used, the use of which has a number of disadvantages:
- first of all they have to be applied very correctly every time which doesn't always work and takes a long time
- secondly, the appearance of the bandages does not allow them to be worn, for example, to work
- thirdly, their low price turns out to be misleading, since the dressings deteriorate very quickly, which negates all savings.
What is the effect of using the medical swimsuit? When compressing dilated veins, varicose vein compression garments accelerate blood flow in the deep veins, thereby eliminating venous congestion. In addition, modern high-quality compression stockings offer a gradual decrease, that is, a gradual decrease in pressure from the lower leg to the thigh or from the hand to the shoulder.
For example, in the lower part of the leg the pressure created by compression stockings or tights is at most 100%, and in the upper thigh it is 40%. This is the most opportune and physiologically determined change in pressure, which has a therapeutic effect. This way of distributing pressure on the veins stimulates and normalizes the upward blood flow due to:
- improvement and standardization of the valve apparatus
- reduction of the enlarged lumen of the peripheral veins, especially saphenous veins, thighs and lower leg
- increase the effect of the muscle pump - when the muscles contract as a result of physical exertion, the blood is pushed upwards.
However, it should be remembered that the compression linen treatment of varicose veins does not eliminate the root causes of venous insufficiency and is used before radical surgical treatment. This jersey mimics the situation - that the enlarged veins are sealed or removed.
In addition, non-surgical conservative treatment of diseases of the legs should be comprehensive. The maximum effect can be achieved if you use creams, ointments recommended by your doctor, lead a healthy lifestyle, wear compression socks or tights every day, and also use folk remedies to treat varicose veins.
Contraindications to the use of compression stockings
As with any treatment, every remedy or medication has a number of contraindications, and the medical swimsuit is no exception. Some people should absolutely not use compression garments, others should use them with caution after a thorough diagnosis and consultation with a doctor. If there are relative contraindications, you should consult a dermatologist, cardiologist, endocrinologist.
- Such underwear is absolutely contraindicated for atherosclerosis, thromboangiitis obliterans, endoarteritis, orthoarteritis. With such chronic diseases of the arteries of the legs, resulting in a decrease in the lumen of the vessels and systolic blood pressure below 80 mm. rt. Art. it is categorically impossible to reduce the pressure in the lower extremities with the help of a medical shirt.
- Medical knitwear should be used with caution by people with overly sensitive skin.
- It is not recommended to use compression underwear for inflammatory skin diseases, allergic skin reactions, various dermatitis, bedsores, open wounds, acute thrombophlebitis and eczema.
- Diabetes mellitus is a relative contraindication, because in case of damage to the vessels of the legs due to diabetes, such underwear should also not be used.
- In cases of septic phlebitis and severe cardiopulmonary insufficiency, when circulatory disorders occur at rest, compression stockings should also not be used.
Many people are afraid to start wearing compression underwear due to the fact that there is an opinion that the jersey causes the development of atrophy of the muscle layer of the walls of the veins, and when their use isstopped, the opposite negative effect can occur - when the the venous wall can not withstand the arterial pressure in the lumen of the vessel. Therefore, due to the atrophy of the venous walls, the existing varicose veins will progress even more.
Unfortunately, it is impossible to conduct clinical studies on all veins subjected to compression, but phlebologists believe that this opinion is wrong, since:
- Patient cannot wear compression garments 24 hours a day
- In veins subjected to compression, blood flow decreases instead of completely stopping.
- Atrophy of the muscle wall most often occurs with a genetic disposition and a specific local inflammatory process with venous stasis and venous filling. And all this is reduced when using stockinette stitch.
- This can only happen depending on the initial sensations of the patients when the use of the linen is stopped. In this case, a temporary deterioration of condition and well-being occurs for some time, which is explained not by atrophy and progression of varicose veins, but by a temporary decrease in the tone of the venous wall.
- Opinions and feelings of patients at the end of using compression underwear with varicose veins - it is difficult for most to get used to starting walking after using compression stockings. Many argue that when using a medical product, the legs become, so to speak, light, and many do not want to give up their use.
How to choose compression garments
Medical compression underwear, jersey is divided into: hospital, which is used only in hospitals, prophylactic and therapeutic. We will consider in detail the compression classes of anti-varicose veins medical compression stockings, how to choose compression underwear, how to wear them and how to care for them.
The most important point is to buy compression stockings, tights, knee-highs exclusively from specialized orthopedic salons or from well-known brand retailers. In these, trained personnel know how to accurately select the size of the laundry, because the wrong size can make the treatment absolutely ineffective. In a special store, the seller will measure the leg in 4 places and select the size of tights or stockings according to a special table.
There are 4 degrees of compression:
- 18-21 mm. rt. Art. Compression class 1 is a prophylactic compression which can and should even be worn permanently by people: prone to varicose veins, pregnant women, people with the first signs of varicose veins, when the veins under the skin stick out strongly, if pain in thelegs appear after prolonged sitting or standing, if spider veins are pronounced and edema appears in the feet and ankles at the end of the day, healthy people whose lifestyle and work require them tositting or standing for a long time - to office workers, drivers, hairdressers, salespeople.
- 23 - 32 mm. rt. Art. Compression Class 2 is the best popular class used to treat thrombophlebitis and varicose veins.
- 34 - 46 mm. rt. Art. Compression class 3 - used for trophic disorders and severe venous insufficiency.
- 49 and over 4 compression class - used extremely rarely, with lymphatic edema.
Those who choose anti-varicose knitwear for the first time should not immediately buy expensive underwear of the 2nd degree of compression, it is possible that your vascular system cannot withstand it. When you walk around in cheap underwear for a while, get used to it, if you feel comfortable in it, then you can buy better and more expensive compression underwear.
For prevention, of course, it is worth using only underwear of the 1st compression class, and already with the development of varicose veins the compression class is determined by the phlebologist. Compression underwear can not cure varicose veins, because the reasons for their appearance are very deep, and the external influence can only be suspended, not allowed to develop further, that is, pantyhosecompression packs for varicose veins are designed to prevent new crowns of varicose veins from appearing. In summer, of course, it is impossible to wear knitwear. Therefore, in the hot season, you need to take oral medication or use other methods of treatment.
You should also know that any compression underwear maintains compression for a maximum of 5-7 months.
The opinions of some women on the quality of compensating underwear from various manufacturers show that expensive models are not always of better quality than budget models. The sheets made in Germany are of good quality and the prices are quite reasonable.
What to look for when buying and how to avoid counterfeiting?
There are quality standards for medical compression underwear for varicose veins, one of the most important and stringent is the European standard RAL-GZ-387. In order for a manufacturer to use the logo of this standard, he must undergo strict certification in Germany or Switzerland. If the underwear has such a certificate, it means that it is really of high quality, creates a distributed pressure of 40-70-100% and is therapeutic, you can learn more about this standard from the packagingand the product label.
It is worth choosing a manufacturer very carefully, since there are a lot of fakes in our market, so it is better to buy compression stockings or compression tights either in retail stores or in specialized stores, where specialists will accurately select the right model based on your measurements.
Since such knits must be worn every day, they must be hypoallergenic; to determine this, the purchased product must bear the mark of the European environmental safety standard Oeko-Tex Standard 10.
Are there any special features when putting on compression stockings, tights, golf?
You should know that even the second class of compression stockings, which is considered the most common, is sometimes "beyond its power" for the patient:
- This often happens due to the inconvenience and difficulty of putting the underwear on your feet. The peculiarity of such knits is that they can not be worn as children's tights, picking them up in an accordion and then pulling them up. Stockings and tights should be put on gradually, spreading over the leg. If a person has a big belly, and tying a lace on a boot is already a problem, it will also be difficult to put on underwear.
- To facilitate the set-up, many use special devices offered in the same salons. And also gloves, which must be worn, they can be both household and medical, because expensive underwear can be damaged by a manicure, and the underwear will slip off better if your hands are in gloves.
- Naturally, the toenails should be cut, filed, there should be no corns, roughness, otherwise the laundry will quickly burst or there will be a lot of puffs.
- It is also important that the legs are dry, as well as the underwear, to wear compression stockings in the morning, when the legs are not swollen and rested.
- Class 3 compression products are especially difficult to wear - it's a lot of work, and if the patient believes their phlebologist and is sure they need such treatment, then you have to be patient, otherwise youshould not start processing from this class. It is generally recommended to wear a compression class 3 and 4 using a special special device.
How to maintain compression garments?
- It is better to have 2 pairs of compression tights, as they need to be washed every day - this is necessary to get rid of even the smallest stains, dust, skin particles, as they can damage the fibers of the laundry faster than them. detergents.
- It should only be hand washed with baby soap, as it cannot be washed in washing machines. The water temperature during washing should not be higher than 40 C, and it is also impossible to iron and bleach the laundry.
- Any rinse aid and conditioner has a destructive effect on the structure. Therefore, they should not be used for washing either.
- Dry the flattened laundry on a horizontal surface, do not wring it under any circumstances, but only gently squeeze it into a towel. Do not dry knits on the battery, in a conventional tumble dryer in an upright position, or in direct sunlight or with a hair dryer.
- You should also take care of the silicone bands on the stockings, they quickly lose their fixing properties after contact with water, try not to get them wet when washing, but wipe them with a towel moistened with alcohol.