Laser procedure for varicose veins is scarless and takes only 10 minutes
Varicose veins are dilated veins present in the lower limbs. Usually they appear blue, purple or skin colour. Some people may also have spiral vein as clusters of tiny blood vessels, which develop close to the surface of the skin. They are usually red, blue or purple in colour and are found behind the knee.
Varicose vein is a common occurrence in the Middle East region, largely due to people’s lifestyle, occupation and obesity. Due to sedentary lifestyles, obesity is quite common and is one of the main causes for varicose veins. Among women, usage of birth control pills containing hormones is a leading cause for varicose veins.
In the initial stages, patients are usually asymptomatic. However, as the problem increases, symptoms such as swelling, throbbing pain, aching, burning sensation, itching, heaviness, tingling or crampy pains in the leg tend to develop and worsen after prolong sitting and standing.
Patient can sometimes develop discolouration of the skin due to impure blood collecting in the leg for a long time. In some cases patients with a prolonged untreated varicose vein problem can also develop an ulcer that develops on the medial or the inner side of the ankle which is very difficult to heal.
Therefore, any person noticing an enlarged vein in the leg should consult a physician at the earliest. To evaluate the exact size and deformity and plan the treatment, a Doppler scan (similar to an ultrasound) of the veins is performed.
Sometimes a conservative treatment is required in the beginning in the form of exercise, weight reduction and medications. The recommended treatment is to undergo a surgical procedure. There are two channels that carry impure blood from the leg to the lungs to clean — a superficial channel and a deep channel.
Varicose veins occur in the superficial channel and the treatment is to remove the channel. Previously an open surgery used to be performed involving multiple cuts and complete removal of the vein.
A scarless laser surgery is now available. A cut or a prick the size of a needle is administered at the ankle and the entire vein is treated with the use of laser. The laser burns the whole vein and the burnt vein gets absorbed by the body over a period of time. It is a very simple procedure which hardly takes 10 minutes and can be performed as a day care procedure where the patient goes home within one or two hours of surgery. The chance of recurrence in such cases is negligible. Dr Rohit Kumar is a specialist general surgeon and head of surgery & emergency department at the International Modern Hospital (This article has been sponsored by the advertiser)