According to statistics, varicose leg varicose disease in men less common than in women about 3 times. However, everyone, including men, is susceptible to this disease.
According to venomists and vascular surgeons, there is no fundamental difference between varicose veins in men and women, but unfortunately, those who have previously sought helplater, as the disease has progressed and is less treatable. The article will focus on features of the course of the disease in men, as well as methods of dealing with it.
Effects of bad genetics and habits on the development of varicose veins
First of all, it should be understood that varicose veins or varicose veins in medicine is called pathology with deformation of the veins. In this case, the rear valve expands, elongates, their walls become thinner, and the valve system no longer functions with its functions. The consequences of the progression of the pathological process are as follows:
- Stasis of blood in the veins, respectively, increases venous pressure.
- A violation of blood circulation is accompanied by a decrease in lymph flow.
- Vascular nodules, also known as spider veins, appear.
- Broken circuit and hematoma occurs.
- Occurrence of trophic ulcers.
- Increased risk of hemophilia.
Studying the root cause of varicose veins, the doctors concluded that the disease is more likely to develop due to genetic inheritance. However, the genetic factor is not related to varicose veins, it is a factor that leads to weakening of the valve system, so that the venous valves weaken and wear faster. This process causes impaired blood circulation in the lumen and as a result, the development of obstruction, deformation of the veins, that is, the veins themselves.
Also, bad habits, on the first list of smoking and drinking, play an important role in the patient's illness. The abuse of tobacco and alcohol products negatively affects the functioning of the cardiovascular system, as well as the state of blood vessels and even the composition of the blood. Again looking at the harsh statistics, both habits are abundant in men, it is this fact that puts smoking and alcoholism at the top of the list of causes that lead to development. of varicose veins.
However, the two reasons described are not the only reasons, there are several other factors considered most likely in the list of pathological causes:
- Excessive stress in the legs caused by occupational activity (chef, surgeon, etc. ), overweight, excessive exercise from sports or all similar occupational activities(loading, building, etc. );
- Medals have a downside, varicose veins can be triggered by lack of exercise, or rather, a sedentary lifestyle or simply sedentary. If we proceed from this point of view, drivers, office workers, as well as people who, for other reasons, move little, even if they don't want to, are susceptible to disease;
- Taking into account the fact that smoking and genetic predisposition, one of the most serious and very common causes is various diseases in which blood clotting is impaired.
For hormonal disturbances, uncomfortable wearing of shoes and the like, they often occur in women, for the same reasons (due to the greater number of triggers), Men are more prone to varicose veins.
The main symptoms of varicose veins
When it comes to the clinical picture of the disease, depends a lot on the stage of its progression, as well as a number of factors and individual causes that cause varicose veins. However, there are some symptoms that men most often experience:
- The early developmental stage of varicose veins rarely makes patients uncomfortable. Legs may be slightly tired, worse at night with a feeling of pulling or squeezing, slight swelling. In most cases, men do not pay attention to such phenomena and to no avail, as the disease progresses and over time the symptoms become more pronounced and cause a lot of trouble.
- As the pathology progresses, veins begin to appear under the skin. Initially, these are separate networks of blood vessels and enlarged veins, which are then supplemented with vascular "asterisks". The more the disease develops, the more obvious this clinical sign becomes. In later stages of the disease, the veins swell under the skin, forming nodules, the risk of nutritional ulcers increases.
- An uncomfortable irritability, a feeling of heaviness in the legs, as well as puffiness that appeared earlier in the late afternoon or at the end of a workday, made me feel more and more every day. Over time, discomfort develops into systemic pain that spreads along the path of the varicose veins.
- Where veins and network of blood vessels are prominent, itching appears on the skin.
- Cramps, often involving the muscles of the feet or calves, can also be a nuisance at night.
It's important to remember!All of the described clinical signs of varicose veins tend to increase in the evening, but this is precisely due to fatigue. That is, symptoms also become more intense with increased exertion.
Stages of venous disease in men
As mentioned above, the symptoms of the disease, in addition to the patient's health and the treatment of varicose veins, depends much on the progression of the disease. In total, there are three developmental stages of the pathology:
- Compensated or mild- in this case the symptoms are the least severe and the patient himself does not actually complain about anything. In the early stages, slightly protruding vessels may appear in the legs, but men do not notice this.
- Moderate- this stage of the disease is also called the subcompensated stage. Veins are more clearly visible on the skin's surface, but their enlargement and deformation can still be considered negligible, as well as the pressure inside the vein. At this stage, other symptoms increase, first appearing edema, fatigue and pain sensation.
- Decompensated phase- the most severe form in which varicose veins reach their peak. They note severe swelling, intense pain that can bother you throughout the day, veins protruding strongly on the skin's surface and changing. At this stage, the vascular nodes are formed, the pressure of the vessel wall increases excessively leading to the damaged vessel wall, the appearance of hematomas. In particularly progressive cases, trophic ulcers and eczema occur. In stage 3, the conservative therapies are completely helpless, the patient needs surgical intervention, the specificity is selected by the doctor.
Treatment of varicose veins
As in the case of symptoms, treatment principles depend directly on the progression of varicose veins. It is important to understand that conservative therapy is primarily effective at the first, sometimes second stage of the development of the disease, otherwise conservative treatments primarily limit the disease, butdoes not offer a chance of complete recovery from venous insufficiency. However, it is necessary to consider a variety of methods to deal with the pathology.
Conservative therapy
For treatment with conservative methods, an integrated approach is very important, mainly consisting of dietary adjustments and lifestyle changes.
In terms of nutrition, it is important to limit the use of junk food, greasy and fried foods, sweets in bulk, and limit salty, spicy and sour foods, for allThis contributes to water retention in the body and impaired lymph drainage.
When you need to make lifestyle adjustments, try to move as much as you can without overloading your legs. Light exercise, regular walking, if you have to sit a lot, you should warm up carefully every hour. It is also very important to eliminate bad habits, quit smoking and limit alcohol use as much as possible.
Drug treatment
Without using some drugs, it is not able to fully treat, therefore, when contacting a lung specialist, the specialist may prescribe drugs of the following groups:
- Anticoagulants - change the composition of the blood, reduce viscosity, improve blood circulation and prevent the formation of blood clots and lymph.
- Venotonics - as the name suggests, drugs in this group improve vascular tone. In turn, it also improves blood circulation, but it is based on a different principle of action.
- As a symptomatic treatment, an ointment from the NSAID group is prescribed, which helps to reduce the sensation of pain and prevent the inflammatory process, and at the same time prescribe a special ointment for varicose veins, eliminate edemaedema and other symptoms.
- In addition, as part of conservative treatment, it is necessary to wear compressed underwear, it prevents the progression of varicose veins and improves the general condition of the patient.
Surgical treatment
If the conservative treatment does not work as expected or the disease progresses too seriously, the decision to intervene, in this case, is one of the surgical options:
- Sclerotherapy- a substance (usually in the form of foam) that is injected into a vein that binds the walls of the veins, eliminating it from the circulatory system. Over time, this blood vessel removes itself and is replaced with connective tissue.
- Vein resection- a formal surgery in which the catheterization of the vein is clamped and subsequent removal of the affected area is performed. This method is the most effective and at the same time radical, as it involves an incision, speech imposition and a long recovery period.
- Miniflebectomyis a variant of veinectomy, performed mainly on small blood vessels. A puncture is made in the skin, through which part of the vein is pulled out with a special surgical instrument for further dissection. The surgery is painless, the perforation heals quickly and does not require rehabilitation.
- Laser coagulation- a method similar to sclerotherapy, but instead of introducing a special preparation into the lumen, a thin catheter equipped with a laser is embedded. there. The thermal action produces a hardening effect, so the circuit is also glued together.