Varicose Veins

Varicose veins are usually thought of as the blue or green bulging veins that can be seen on the legs of people suffering from varicose veins. These blue or green bulges are the dilated vein walls that are full of blood. Unfortunately, as with many medical conditions, improved research and technology has helped our understanding of varicose veins but this has also caused some confusion.

Simply, this is because we now understand the things that cause varicose veins – namely the fact that the valves do not work in the veins that feed the varicose veins, allowing blood to fall back down the main veins and into the small surface veins, blowing them up to make them bulge and be seen as varicose veins.

However, using new technologies, such as duplex ultrasound, we are able to see that many people who have no visible varicose veins on the surface, still have the underlying problem of valves not working.

Therefore, with varicose veins, the simple definition is of bulging blue or green veins in the lower leg. The reality is that, although some people with varicose veins can be seen on the surface, a great many other people have vein problems where the surface veins have not dilated and therefore, although duplex ultrasound would show the varicose veins, a doctor or nurse examining the patient would not be able to see these on the surface.

This is very important as what it means is a doctor or nurse examining a patient can say with certainty if varicose veins are present but, unless they use a duplex ultrasound examination, they are unable to say with certainty that varicose veins are not present.

Vist the Varicose Veins website for more information on what Varicose Veins are and how Varicose Veins are treated

Further Reading on Varicose Veins - Medical Pages Information Sites

Read more on Varicose Veins at www.varicose-veins-treatments.co.uk

Further Reading on Varicose Veins - Directory

Varicose veins section  

Further Reading on Varicose Veins - Other websites