Venous Legs

Veins are the vessels that carry blood back to your heart. Veins have flaps called valves that prevent blood from flowing in the wrong direction. These work similar to your home faucet. When you turn the faucet off, no water should drip out of the spout. If the valves of your veins work properly, no blood flow should leak back through the valves. If a vein is damaged, the valve may no longer close fully. This can lead to increased pressure on the veins below the leaky valve. Over time, the vein walls begin to weaken from the increased blood flow pooling. This congestion of blood in your veins can cause a number of problems.  Varicose veins are a bulging or twisting of the vein, which gives the vein a "rope" appearance. As time goes on, more veins may appear to be varicosed. People with varicose veins frequently complain not only of the unsightly appearance of these veins, but frequently have a persistent aching or burning sensation in their legs. In severe cases,  varicose veins may lead to venous leg ulcers and the danger of blood clots. A blood clot  that may develop in your legs can be very dangerous, especially if it breaks off and travels to your lungs. Do you have swollen legs or sores that don't heal? These are symptoms for abnormal blood flow in the legs.

Incompetent valve flow	Normal flow
Pool of venous blood We can assess for incompetent venous flow and varicosities using our Venous Leg screening.

Who is at risk for venous leg disease?

• Some people have a family heredity risk of developing varicose veins.
• Some risk factors are job related. If you are on your feet all day, this can put increases pressure on the valves in your veins. Eventually, this may lead to varicose veins, and in severe cases, chronic swelling of the legs and sores or ulcers may develop near the ankles.
• Other risk factors are an inactive lifestyle, being overweight, pregnancy and previous surgeries, especially near the hips and pelvis.
       
  "Your Health Matters" can screen you for venous leg disease. If you have any of the risk factors mentioned above, please consider having this simple ultrasound screening test for venous disease. This test is easy, takes little time and is offered at a very reasonable cost.

Examination time: 10 to 15 minutes, Cost: $40.00