How do venous valves work

It is performed by your doctor injecting the damaged vein with a liquid that closes the vein. Have a Vein Clinics of America network physician examine your legs and recommend a treatment program customized to your specific condition. Satish Vayuvegula. Share this post. The answer is yes, veins do have valves. What are vein valves? Why do veins have valves and what is their function? How do I know if my vein valves are damaged?

The symptoms of venous insufficiency include: Swelling in legs or ankles Tight feeling in calves Itchy, painful legs Pain when walking that alleviates when you rest Varicose veins Brown-colored skin, near the ankles Leg ulcers Restless leg syndrome urge to move your legs Painful leg cramps or muscle spasms These symptoms may start out small, but will likely get worse the longer your veins go without treatment.

Is venous insufficiency dangerous? Find a vein clinic in your city What causes venous insufficiency? There are a number of different factors that could contribute to your development of this vein issue, but these are the primary causes of venous insufficiency according to John Hopkins Medicine : Obesity Pregnancy and other hormone changes Age Family history Damage due to leg injury, surgery, etc. High blood pressure in leg veins over time due to sedentary lifestyle Lack of exercise Smoking Blood clot DVT Swelling and inflammation of a vein close to the skin phlebitis How are venous insufficiency and other vein valve problems treated?

Are you having issues with your vein valves? Schedule consultation. Medically Reviewed by. Satish Vayuvegula Dr. Healthy venous valves successfully open and close as necessary. In many people, the valves will break, leading to backflow or venous insufficiency. This can lead to varicose veins. These distended blood vessels result in moderate to severe pain and visible swelling, in addition to preventing blood from circulating as it should. When left untreated, varicose veins can result in skin ulcers, blood clots, increased pain and swelling, and even deep vein thrombosis DVT.

Since at least the 19th century, sclerotherapy has been used to treat chronic venous insufficiency. Sclerotherapy is an ideal solution for most patients with spider veins. The basics Put simply, sclerotherapy involves an injection of a solution, the sclerosant, directly into the affected vein.

The solution damages the inner lining of the vein. The vein collapses, the treated vein is reabsorbed into the surrounding tissue, and blood is rerouted through healthier surrounding veins. Sclerotherapy is a non-invasive outpatient procedure that usually takes no more than 30 to 45 minutes.

Once treatments conclude, patients are able to drive themselves home and resume normal activities. Patients will be asked to wear compression hose overnight the first night and then while up and about for two weeks. They are also to avoid prolonged sun exposure.

They should not have any heavy lifting of over 30 pounds and refrain from aerobic exercise for 48 hours after the procedure.

How sclerotherapy helps Sclerotherapy can effectively treat up to 80 percent of damaged veins with each session, while fewer than 10 percent of patients report no improvement in their condition. For patients suffering from pain with spider veins, it can alleviate pain.

For varicose vein treatment, it can eliminate the associated pain and swelling as well as eliminate unsightly bulging of the veins. Possible complications While most spider vein cases respond well to sclerotherapy, some patients may require multiple rounds of treatment before seeing improvement. If pain and inflammation remain after three to four weeks, more injections may be necessary. As a noninvasive procedure, sclerotherapy carries fewer complications than a more invasive alternative, but some patients may experience some minor side effects.

The most common include pain, itching, bruising, and inflammation at the site of the injection, but slight discoloration of the skin and hives are possible in some cases. Most of these symptoms resolve on their own without further treatment. Know your options While sclerotherapy is an effective and appropriate therapy for many patients, different conditions and circumstances may require different approaches. Today, there are a wide variety of minimally or non-invasive treatment options for venous disorders.

Contact The VEIN Specialists today at to schedule a consultation with one of our physicians or request an appointment online at www. Varicose veins are seen by many people as a female health problem. More specifically, people consider varicose veins to be a cosmetic issue that affects older women. This view is false. Varicose veins can develop at any age, and they are an issue experienced by both genders.

However, men often ignore the veins and refuse to seek the treatment they need and may suffer from that decision. Ignoring the problem Numerous studies and various health statistics prove that men are more likely than women to ignore their health concerns.

The lack of treatment for varicose veins is no exception to this behavior. Many men do not see the veins as a health threat when there is no pain and no obvious medical complications. The veins are less noticeable on men, so ignoring their development is easier for them than for women. Men typically do not wear clothes that reveal their legs as often as their female counterparts, and the hair on their legs may help to disguise the discolored, bulging veins. Because men do not undergo pregnancies, they also may not experience the sudden appearance of the veins.

Varicose veins may not arrive as early in life, so the gradual problem is easier for men to ignore. Many men may also avoid discussing the concern, even if it causes discomfort, because they mistakenly believe varicose veins are a female condition. Addressing the cause Genetics plays a role in the development of varicose veins, but lifestyle factors contribute to the problem.

Many men now work sedentary jobs. Forty years ago, approximately 20 percent of all American jobs were light-duty work. Venous valves are especially important in the arms and legs as they prevent the backflow of blood in response to this pull of gravity.

Deep veins are almost always beside an artery with the same name e. Collectively, they carry the vast majority of the blood. These deep veins play a significant role in propelling blood toward the heart. The one-way venous valves in deep veins prevent blood from flowing backward, and the muscles surrounding the deep veins compress them, helping force the blood toward the heart, just as squeezing a toothpaste tube ejects toothpaste.

Deoxygenated blood is pumped through a series of veins and venous valves in your body. As the leg and arm muscles are activated contract the valves in the veins open to allow blood to flow back towards the heart. Each valve has two opposing flaps that act like gates opening in one direction, stopping blood from moving back down. Venous valves are delicate structures, the integrity of which is crucial for the normal function of the venous system.

Normally, valves in your deeper leg veins keep blood moving forward toward the heart. This causes the veins to stay filled with blood, especially when standing, resulting in Chronic Venous Insufficiency. Venous valve abnormalities can lead to numerous other disorders, too, including a life-threatening condition called thromboembolic phenomena. Valve repair for this condition consists of surgical correction of the malfunctioning valves to improve their function.