It is often thought that varicose veins occur because we age and put more stress on the legs. While most of our patients with venous insufficiency are in the 35-55 age group, we do occasionally see much younger patients with significant, advanced varicose veins. Many of these patients have a hereditary predisposition to developing varicose veins as there is a familial pattern to their appearance.
I recently saw a 14 year old boy, very athletic, tall and muscular with very large calf varicose veins, ankle swelling and aching. He plays basketball for his school team and told me that the leg issues were a real impact on his performance.
We did a very thorough evaluation and found that his saphenous vein was not working properly, allowing backflow of blood to the lower leg (venous reflux). Once he was treated with VNUS Closure, his veins regressed markedly so that they were no longer visible. Most importantly, his leg pain that had been present before treatment had resolved within a week of the procedure.
It is important to recognize that leg swelling and pain are often the result of varicose veins and that proper evaluation with duplex ultrasound is necessary to ensure normal vein flow. If abnormalities are found, most are very easily treated (with VNUS Closure, phlebectomy of sclerotherapy) so that vein flow is resorted to normal. Long term benefits are excellent.
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