Venous disease occurs when veins are damaged, causing blood to pool or leak, often in the legs. Causes include birth defects, inflammation, blood clots, and physical stress. Symptoms include pain, inflammation, skin discoloration, and ulcers. Chronic venous insufficiency can lead to skin damage and ulcers, and blood clots can be fatal.
A venous disease is a medical condition caused by abnormal or damaged veins, the blood vessels that carry blood back to the heart. Venous disease occurs when a vein has been damaged to the valves that regulate the direction of blood flow, resulting in venous insufficiency, as the circulatory system’s ability to send deoxygenated blood to the heart is impaired. This allows blood passing through the damaged veins to pool or leak, most commonly in the legs, which further damages the veins by stretching them and can cause damage to nearby tissue. Some forms of venous disease have primarily cosmetic effects, but more serious forms can cause pain, impaired mobility, and health problems such as skin ulcers. In some cases, venous disease can be fatal, causing skin cancer or a fatal blood clot.
Venous diseases have several potential causes. In some cases, they are the result of birth defects in the veins that prevent the valves from working properly. They can be caused by inflammation of the veins, called phlebitis, which itself can be caused by infection, physical trauma, or chemical irritants. Blood clots can lead to venous disease by stretching or inflaming the veins. Illnesses can be caused by injury to blood vessels, activities or occupations that place physical stress on the legs, or pregnancy. The disease is more common in women than men due to hormonal effects, and the risk is increased in overweight or tall people.
The effects of the disease of the premises are usually seen mainly in the legs and feet. In a person with venous insufficiency, blood pooling and leaking in the lower limbs can cause pain, inflammation, and a feeling of heaviness when standing or walking. The skin may discolor around the ankles, and in severe cases, skin ulcers may appear on the same area. In severe cases, venous disease can cause enough pain or heaviness in the legs to interfere with the sufferer’s ability to stand or walk for long periods of time. The pooling of blood in the legs can also cause what would normally be minor injuries resulting in severe blood loss.
Some effects of venous disease are seen directly in the veins themselves. The distension of the small veins on the surface of the sufferer’s skin can cause distension of blood vessels known as spider veins, which are blue, red or purple in color, become visible on the skin and in some cases become painful. A similar problem in larger veins results in varicose veins, which cause affected veins to become twisted and enlarged, often visibly protruding against the skin and becoming knotty or cord-like in appearance. Both conditions most commonly occur in the legs, but can also appear elsewhere.
Venous disease makes blood clots more likely to form, because damaged veins have slowed blood flow and increased susceptibility to inflammation from injury. If the clot stays in place, it causes further inflammation of the vein or thrombophlebitis, which further aggravates the damage to the vein. If a clot forms in a deep vein, you develop a condition called deep vein thrombosis, where there is a significant risk that the clot will be dislodged and begin traveling through your circulatory system until it becomes blocked in the arteries of your lungs, causing a potentially fatal blockage called a pulmonary embolism.
Long-term venous disease can get worse over time as damage builds up, resulting in a condition called chronic venous insufficiency. The swelling and inflammation become more severe, eventually impeding blood flow so severely that it interferes with the flow of nutrients and oxygen to the sufferer’s skin. The skin becomes damaged and inflamed, eventually resulting in a condition known as venous stasis dermatitis in which the skin becomes dry, leathery, and discolored. The increased blood pool in the legs can also produce skin ulcers known as venous stasis ulcers, which are painful and in some cases become cancerous.
Protect your devices with Threat Protection by NordVPN
