If you get a cramp, it can be for a variety of reasons and one is going to be varicose veins. Are you asking this question: can varicose veins cause pain? If so, then this will be the answer – they can. Once you have felt the pain you will be well advised to visit a vein doctor and let them examine you and confirm that you do in fact have varicose veins. It is possible to try some remedies at home before you involve the vein doctor, but always bear in mind that you might end up visiting them.
Sometimes you could be lucky and not have any real problems with the veins, but once you have asked can varicose veins cause pain and found out that they can, you don’t want to wait too long. A massage will be an enjoyable way to deal with the pain, but there will not be a guarantee that it will work. You can try stretching, but make sure that you do not overdo it, or a vein doctor may not be the only medic you need to see.
Wear compression stockings at home
At home you can try wearing compression stockings and while they may not cure the varicose veins, they can do a lot to make the legs less painful. There are a lot of different types of compression stockings and the correct ones should be chosen. If they are too loose, they will not work and if they are too tight, they can cause more damage. Before you go ahead and buy some, ask the pharmacist or your insurance company “does Medicare cover compression stockings?” If they do not it does not mean that you should not use them. You have asked “can varicose veins cause pain?” and know that they can so you want to try and prevent is as soon as possible.
How Can Varicose Veins Cause Pain?
There are a number of ways that pain can be caused, and this will be once the valves have become damaged and the blood is flowing how it sees fit. First though, you will need to understand how the valve becomes damaged and how you can deal with it. When you have your first appointment, you can ask a lot of questions and they will be able to answer then for. You may start with this: can varicose veins cause pain? Other questions can include:
- Why is this happening at all and is it my fault?
- Is there anything I can do to improve the situation without too much medical intervention?
- Do you have any alternatives in case the first suggestion does not work?
- Can varicose veins cause pain that you are able to treat?
- How long will this treatment last?
- Is the treatment permanent?
Once you have asked about the reasons for the veins, you can start asking what is happening inside your legs. It may be hard to understand how can varicose veins cause pain, but when you know exactly what is happening you will understand. Here is the explanation:
The blood normally travels from the heart to the feet through veins and then starts the journey back up again. The blood reaches a valve in the vein and this opens to let the blood flow through. The blood is squeezed up a vein and when it gets to the next valve, it opens up and allows it to move on to the next vein. When the valves become old and damaged, they are not able to close behind the blood and keep it in place.
As a result, the blood enters and the valve does not close, meaning that the blood falls back into the previous part of the vein. Eventually it will fall back to the ankles and begin to settle there. This is going to be painful but can also lead to ulcers forming which means that there is something else that needs to be treated. Now you have found the answer to this question, can varicose veins cause pain?
The vein doctor you see will be able to explain everything to you and this should be face to face. It is advisable to make a visit to the surgery before your appointment and see how things work. You can check out how other patients are treated and if there is a pleasant atmosphere at the surgery. Once you have decided that you are happy to go to this vein doctor, then it will be time to make the first appointment and start the trip to being pain free and varicose vein free.
The first visit to the vein doctor
When you make the first visit, there will be a little more than an examination carried out, followed by a Q and A session. It is best to be totally honest as the only person who will suffer if you do not is you. A hands-on examination will be carried out, and this will require you to be checked when standing and then when sitting. The vein doctor will be looking to see if the skin is being damaged by the increasing large veins. If you are concerned that there may be something else causing the issues you are having, you can ask them can varicose veins cause pain. They will explain that they can and also why you have them. It is likely to be for some of the following reasons:
- You are female –This may not seem fair, but the fact is that more women than men suffer from varicose veins and you cannot do anything to change this. How can varicose veins cause pain will be a question you are likely to ask.
- Weight –You can alter this, but it could be that you will not be able to lose enough in the timescale required to make a lot of difference.
- Age –The good news is that you have reached the age of 60 or more – the bad news is that things such as varicose veins are going to become the norm.
- Lifestyle –Sitting too much or standing too much can be a problem, so you should try to alternate the two whenever you can.
Once the first two sessions have started, it is possible that you will be sent for an ultrasound. This will give a much clearer view of the veins and any damage that might have already been caused. Most importantly, there will be blood clots detected if any have formed. You will have the ultrasound in the doctor’s office and all it is entails is a transducer will be placed on the legs and moved around over them.
It will put a copy of the inside of the legs onto the doctor’s screen and they will be able to offer the best treatment based on these findings. If you still want more information as to how can varicose veins cause pain, you will need to make a further appointment and go into the issue in more detail. Treatment can be suggested, and you could ask to see examples of the work that a vein doctor has done before – most doctors will have case studies that they can show you.
Starting your treatment
Most of the time the vein doctor will tell you that you do not need to be treated in a hospital but can be treated in their office. Treatment will not take long and will not have much of an effect on your life or delay things that you plan to do. Clearly excessive exercising will not be possible for a while, but everything else – including going back to work as long as you do not have a strenuous job.
Before they agree to treatment, they may suggest a few home treatments that you can do yourself and help to make the process less doctor’s office-based and more home-based. It could be suggested that you try to lose weight as this will take some of the pressure off the damaged vein and valve. It will not reverse the damage but can prevent it getting worse.
How you sit can help and if you are able to raise your legs regularly, you will find that although you know the answer to the question can varicose veins cause pain?, you can limit the amount of pain that yours are causing. Changing the type of clothes you wear can also have a positive effect on blood flow, so don’t wear anything that is too tight. Finally, if you are able to stand for a while and then sit for a while, you should end up feeling a lot better and ready to face whatever it is that the vein doctor has in store for you.
Does Medicare cover compression stockings?
Very often a vein doctor is asked this: does Medicare cover compression stockings? The bad news is that it will be very rare that Medicare will cover these costs. Even when you are given a prescription for them, it will not make any difference. The only type they will pay for are not the ones that are needed to treat varicose veins, so there is no point applying as you will waste time. It will be better to buy your own and start treatment right away.
Have you already asked this: can varicose veins cause pain? If so you may have already tried the stockings to try and prevent the pain getting worse. The issue is that there is not much change of the veins improving; you will just be able to stop them getting worse. In reality, you will need treatment before you can see any real improvement.
Treatment for varicose veins
Once you have taken the advice that the vein doctor gave you, it will be time to receive treatment and get rid of the problem that way. The main treatments offered will be:
- Sclerotherapy –Smaller veins will receive a foam solution, and this will lead to them scaring and in a short period of time they will phase. A few treatments may need to be done and you can be awake while it happens.
- Laser treatment – Again this is going to be ideal for small veins – often called spider veins. Light is sent to the damaged vein and it will fade and then go altogether.
- Catheter assisted treatments – A thin tube is put into the vein and it heats up. As it is removed, the heat causes the vein to close in on itself and blood can no longer enter. Normally this will be the option for bigger and more prominent veins.
- Vein stripping and ligation – Here the vein will be dealt with before it is able to reach a deep vein. As with the previous ones there will not be the need to go to hospital but can be done in the doctor’s office. Small incisions are made in the leg and the vein is taken out through this. The blood will still move correctly around the body as there are plenty of other veins that will take over from the ones that have been taken out.
- Vein surgery – This means that you will be treated as an outpatient but may need help for some time after the procedure. It tends to be offered when there are ulcers present or there is the risk of them forming. This is invasive as a camera needs to be put into the leg by the vein doctor to be sure that the right vein is reached.
Throughout this it is likely that the main question you will want asking is this: can varicose veins cause pain? This is something that you will want answered before you decide which vein treatment you want to opt for. If the pain is not too great as yet, you may choose to have a gentler treatment as the main issue here will be the look of the veins and the appearance of your legs. As soon as the pain hits, it will be time to get treatment as a matter of urgency.