Varicose veins are a result of various life-style choices, genetics, and environmental factors. While there is no sure way to prevent them from happening, there are things that you can do that will help lower the risk of them developing.

• Live healthy.
  Being active, consuming good foods like fruits and vegetables, maintaining a safe weight and body fat balance, getting sufficient sleep, all of these help the body stay in a state where problems like varicose veins are less likely to occur.
• Exercise.
  Movement is key in helping the heart and venous system function properly. Our muscles, especially our leg muscles, help the veins push the blood along its path back to the heart as they move. By making sure to have movement in your daily routine you can help your veins stay healthy.
• Elevating the feet.
  Our legs support our body weight when we are standing and sitting. Increasing, or constant pressure on the veins is a common factor in the development of varicose veins. By elevating our legs when we are sitting or laying down, it helps take the pressure off of them. Less pressure on our legs means less pressure on the veins in our legs, and a lesser chance of the pressure doing harm.

If you have pain, swelling, or heaviness in your legs, ankles, or pelvis, you may have varicose veins (venous insufficiency). Typically, varicose vein patients also suffer from pain while standing or walking for long periods of time. Venous insufficiency is a disease and should be treated by professionals who specialize in comprehensive varicose vein management, including diagnosis and treatment.

Insurance will cover most procedures we offer. If there is a question about coverage, our staff will determine if your insurance will approve the expenses. If your insurance does not cover a procedure, payment options can be arranged to meet your individual needs.

Cases of varicose veins and the need for immediate treatment fluctuate on an individual level. In order to properly discern the needs of the patients, our doctors perform a physical examination prior to starting any treatments. The doctors use the examination to better evaluate the current situation with the patient’s varicose veins, and will look for twisting, bloating, and discoloration of the skin. It is also customary to review the patient’s medical history; it can not help the doctors know why the varicose veins have developed, and also alert them to possible dangers, such as the possibility of ulcers or blood clots.

A good vein is one that is able to do its job of transferring the blood back to your heart. You cannot normally see them, and they do not cause any issues to the surrounding tissue.
A bad or damaged vein will normally struggle to get the blood back to the heart, usually because it has developed backflow. Additionally, this backflow can cause swelling, discoloration and twisting. These visible signs are a good indicator that the veins are damaged. Along with the visible signs it is normal to experience itching and a dryness of the skin around the area of the affected vein.

No. It is possible that varicose veins may develop in deeper regions of the venous system (the vein network). When this happens it is possible that you will be unable to see the vein itself from the surface of the skin, however, similar symptoms of the closer to surface veins will usually occur as well. These symptoms may include restless legs, dryness, itchiness, and other related issues. Most cases of varicose veins happening in a deeper region have happened in the leg or pelvic regions. If you are experiencing symptoms in your leg or pelvic regions, but do not see visible varicose veins, we recommend that you come in and see one of our varicose vein and vascular specialists. They can help you determine if your symptoms are associated with varicose veins and help you get properly treated.