Predex™ | Varicose veins

How Predex™ can help you ? Varicose veins




	What causes Varicose Veins ? Our hearts push nutrient- and oxygen-rich blood out to the tissues through an array of branching arteries. Veins collect and feed blood back to the heart for re-oxygenation. But this return trip is anything but simple. For one thing, blood from our extremities has an uphill fight against gravity to reach the heart. And while the rhythmic influx of fresh blood provides a certain indirect push for the depleted blood, we don't have heart muscle beating at the tip of our toes to force blood back along its long return journey. What we do have in our legs, however, are muscles located along the deep leg veins which actually contract to help "pump" blood back to the heart. This process works most effectively when the large leg muscles are active, as, for example, when you're walking. Long periods of sitting or standing tend to produce increased pressure inside the deep leg veins, as the blood moves back to the heart more sluggishly. This task is aided by a sophisticated system of one-way valves. Working in parallel with the deep leg veins is another, more superficial, network of veins, located closer to the skin and carrying blood at far lower pressures. Connecting these two vein systems are "perforator" channels. If a faulty valve or blood clot increases pressure inside the deep veins, the perforator channels in turn "bleed off" excess pressure into the spidery superficial veins. These normally very small, elastic veins can in turn stretch and balloon, and additional one-way valves can be damaged. One-way valves, as we've seen, are crucial to the success of the veins' pumping action. When these valves are not effective in preventing a backflow of blood, the result is varicose veins. Varicose veins and spider veins can be simply a cosmetic concern but usualy varicose veins causes a constellation of symptoms including aching, heaviness of the legs, pain and discomfort, particularly after standing up for a long time. Varicose veins can also cause ankle swelling in a few people and sometimes the condition leads to more serious problems : In some people abnormally high pressure in the leg veins as a result of incompetent valves can cause damage to the skin, with itching, eczema, pigmentation and scarring, and eventually lead to ulcers. In the United States of America, varicose veins affect as many as 33% of adult women and 20% of men. [Italian College of Phlebology]. Some studies suggest that varicose veins are one of the top three medical conditions, trailing only allergies and high blood pressure in overall prevalence. [Vannoni]
	Common Treatments for Varicose Vein Problems : Surgery : Typically reserved for only the most severe varicose vein problems, surgical interventions can include sealing off or "stripping" (taking out) the greater saphenous vein; "sleeving" or otherwise repairing a valve to improve function; or use of a graft to bypass an affected vein area. Such surgeries can be very expensive ($3000 to $10,000, depending on the extent and severity of the vein problem). As with any surgery, risks may include anaesthesia reactions; bleeding; infection; post-surgical pain and swelling; and blood clots. A newer, less-invasive "ambulatory phlebectomy" procedure removes varicosities through a series of tiny incisions. This procedure is not suitable for all vein problems, but for appropriate patients offers the advantages of outpatient treatment, reduced cost (about $700 per session), and significantly reduced recovery time. Because vein disorders tend to be progressive, problems often recur in other locations and repeat surgeries can be required as new varicosities appear. Recurrence rates concerning varicose veins have been estimated to be as high as 50% over 10 years. [Int'l Task Force]. Sclerotherapy : This procedure involves injection of an irritating agent into the damaged vein area, which produces scarring in the lining of the varicose vein and eventually seals the vein closed. Varicose symptoms typically disappear over about the next 4-6 weeks, as the vein collapses and the blood re-routes itself through other, healthier veins. Sclerotherapy's injection procedure is both less invasive and less expensive than surgery (costing approximately $200 to $500 per leg). Potential risks include unintended obstruction of blood flow by the sclerosing agent; irritation of the vein; and damage to adjacent tissue or nerves. In a small number of patients, some skin discoloration may occur which can last for several months. An international task force review of the existing medical literature conducted in 2000 concluded that both sclerotherapy and surgery are not generally considered appropriate unless certain types of deep vein reflux is present ("saphenofemoral" or "saphenopopliteal" reflux), or following vein thrombosis (clotting). [Clement]. Localized Therapies : Minimally-invasive therapies for CVI include radio-frequency ablation, a technique which uses a thin catheter to heat the inside of the damaged vein, sealing it closed. Treatment usually takes about an hour or less per leg, and pain is minimal. Risks can include bruising at the catheter incision site and temporary numbness. Similarly, laser therapy also induces heat to seal a damaged vein shut but involve no incision. Side effects can include bruising, inflammation, and numbness. Compression Therapy : Long considered the "gold standard" or first line of CVI treatment, graduated compression stockings are widely recommended to combat the swelling associated with CVI and to help give support to superficial veins. Easy to prescribe but often frustratingly difficult to use in real life, compression stockings need to exert significant pressure to be therapeutic (at least 35 mm Hg) [Clement], and can be especially challenging for people with arthritis, limited hand strength, or difficulty in bending. Newer designs for compression garments using Velcro and other simplified fasteners can be somewhat easier for patients to use. Medication : Topical antibiotics and other ointments may be prescribed for leg ulcers; both over-the-counter and prescription medications can sometimes help reduce the discomfort and swelling associated with CVI. Diosmin and Varicose Veins and varicosity-related symptoms: Here's a brief look at scientific studies shed light on how diosmin can help aginst varicose veins : • A 2002 study involving 5,052 CVI patients reported "continuous clinical improvement . . . throughout the study," with clinical scores for Chronic venous insufficiency-related pain, swelling, leg heaviness (heavy leg syndrome) and cramps all showing significant decrease after treatment with micronized diosmin and hesperidin for 6 months. [Jantet]. • The addition of micronized purified flavonoid fraction to compression and other conventional therapies for Chronic Venous Insufficiency patients with venous leg ulcers significantly increased the healing rate and reduces the healing time for ulcers, compared with conventional therapy alone [Simka; Smith]. • Diosmin also significantly reduced reported discomfort of "heavy leg" syndrome. [Carpentier]. • Flavonoids have similarly been shown to strengthen venous tone and improve the elasticity of veins in humans [Struckmann]; and to reduce platelet aggregation (clotting) and fibrinogen binding in rats [McGregor]. • Flavonoids produced a 200% increase in lymphatic flow, along with decreased capillary permeability and increased capillary resistance, in a study involving dogs. [Struckmann]. Flavonoids' observed clinical efficacy on edema is believed to be due to improving lymphatic function and reduction of certain adhesion molecules, counteracting Chronic venous insufficiency-induced damage to microcirculation. [Ramelet]. Flavonoids may also help the body repair small blood vessel damage that leads to fluid permeability. [Chrystie 2001]. • A protective effect against micro-circulatory damage from venular occlusion (closure) in rats was noted by researcher Takase; in a study on hamsters, Bouskela similarly noted improved micro-vascular reactivity (blood flow after artificially-induced blockage), and theorized that micronized flavonoid fraction "could function as an antioxidant, which may explain its beneficial therapeutic effect in chronic venous insufficiency where oxidative stress is involved in the pathological mechanism." Tantalizing clues about the possible mechanism of action explaining these results are offered in the following clinical studies: • The venoconstrictor effects of flavonoids may be explained in part by local inhibition of an enzyme known as COMT, and enhancement of sympathetic activity. Since norepinephrine is broken down by COMT, inhibition of this enzyme tends to increase vein tone. [Boudet].

	INFOBOX \| Other Supplements To Consider : Supplements thought to help against varicose veins include : Some experts recommend onions and garlic, which inhibit platelet aggregation (clotting) and may help to break up a protein called fibrin surrounding varicose veins. DON'T WAIT! SEEK IMMEDIATE MEDICAL HELP for: • A varicose vein that is RED in color (rather than the more usual blue); • A serious cut or injury to a varicose vein;

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