Venous diseases create a significant discomfort for a sick person. The most common discomfort with varicose veins include itching of the veins in the legs. According to statistics, 10% of people on our planet suffer from varicose veins. The disease is more often diagnosed in women. Many patients are worried about why the veins on the legs itch and what to do in this case.
Itching Diseases
Itching on the legs can cause various diseases. The most common reason why leg veins itch is varicose veins. Blood stagnation occurs in the vessels, because of this their elasticity is lost, and they become brittle. As a result, venous insufficiency increases, and blood clots form in the veins.
With thrombophlebitis , blood clots appear in vessels with inflamed walls. The veins become very fragile, so they begin to damage, pulsate. In this case, the patient feels pain, burning and veins on the legs are very itchy.
Deep vein thrombosis is an ailment that does not have any distinctive symptoms. Most often, the disease appears in patients who are forced to lie. Its symptoms are local hyperthermia, edema and, of course, a rather strong feeling of itching.
Postphlebitic syndrome - develops after a person has suffered thrombosis. In the lower limb, pain, heaviness and itching are felt.
Why does the patient feel itchy
So why do the veins on the legs itch with the above diseases? If the vessels are affected, blood stagnation occurs in them, which ultimately leads to dystrophy of the soft tissues. The skin, which is located above the dilated veins, is not adequately supplied with blood. Toxins and decay products accumulate in the tissues, which causes pathological changes in the skin. They become dry, red, flaky and itchy.
In the lower extremities, there is a violation of the outflow of venous blood, the activity of the valvular apparatus deteriorates, blood clots clog the veins. When they protrude on the surface of the skin, irritation intensifies, and this is the reason why the veins on the legs itch.
As a rule, patients have itchy tibia. Varicose veins cause a very severe itch, which a person can not tolerate. Due to intensive combing on the surface of the skin, small sores-ulcers form, which hurt and inflame from time to time. This phenomenon in medicine is called varicose eczema. Burning and itching keeps a person in constant tension, he is irritated, cannot sleep, eat, or rest.
Causes of pathology
Varicose veins occur due to impaired blood flow, which causes the walls of the veins to expand and the vein valves begin to function poorly. As a result, this leads to bloating of the veins, the appearance of edema and a change in the structure of the skin and their peeling. All these factors become the reason why the varicose leg itches, where the vein is. But this is only the beginning, more serious problems await the patient: venous dermatitis and venous eczema.
Chronic venous insufficiency and varicose veins have quite a few unpleasant symptoms. The main ones are:
- pain
- severity
- swelling of the extremities;
- itching in the veins;
- cosmetic skin defects.
At the very beginning of the disease, patients feel significant discomfort. If a person promptly seeks help from a doctor, then a correctly diagnosed and quality treatment can prevent possible serious complications. But getting rid of the burning and itching that haunts the patient every day is not so simple.
Who is more likely to suffer from varicose veins
Diseases of the legs, which are accompanied by burning and itching of the veins, are quite common in people with a hereditary predisposition, having bad habits and a lot of weight, as well as leading a sedentary lifestyle. For these reasons, veins become weak, less elastic, and often become inflamed. This is the answer to the question why the veins on the legs itch with varicose veins. Itching indicates the neglect of the disease. As a rule, these sensations appear when the veins have expanded, and “vascular asterisks” can already be seen on the skin.
Veins on the lower extremities usually hurt and itch in people who:
- have a genetic predisposition;
- engaged in heavy physical labor, athletes also belong here;
- have sedentary work;
- persons whose work is associated with standing on their feet (sellers, hairdressers, cooks, surgeons and others);
- lovers of high heels;
- women during pregnancy;
- those who prefer to sit in a pose for a long time, legs crossed;
- taking oral contraceptives.
What are the complications of itching?
The most common complications are such pathologies:
- Eczema. Over damaged veins, foci of flaky skin form. More often, such a complication is observed in women with vascular diseases having significant excess weight. To get rid of such a complication, it is necessary to restore venous patency as quickly as possible and thereby normalize the passage of venous blood.
- Dermatitis. Due to the fact that with varicose veins the skin is very itchy and the patient begins to comb it, the skin begins to become inflamed. This leads to the appearance of ulcers, small wounds, as well as pustules. Through them, a bacterial infection enters the body. If you do not pay proper attention to it in time, then congestive dermatitis can develop, which then will need to be treated for a long time and seriously, otherwise everything can result in a dangerous blood disease.
- Hemorrhage under the skin. When diseased vessels burst, red spots form on the skin of the legs. At first they are small in size, but over time they begin to merge and become large. Patients in this case, besides itching, also feel a strong burning sensation.
- Trophic ulcer. This is another complication of varicose veins, which is expressed in deep damage to the skin and muscles. Ulcers can be either young or more mature, singular or plural, dry or serous-purulent. The disease is usually treated conservatively. But there are times when surgical treatment is used.
Varicose veins treatment
If treatment of varicose veins is not started in time, then venous walls atrophy. The connective scar tissue begins to grow, the inner vascular layer thickens, the lumen of the veins becomes much narrower, the valve apparatus does not work at full strength. All of these factors lead to impaired blood circulation. As a result, internal organs and tissues lack oxygen and nutrients, this leads to their dystrophy and dysfunction.
This suggests that if itching appeared in the veins, you should immediately go to a medical institution for help to a phlebologist. The doctor will conduct a thorough diagnosis of the entire vascular system, and then prescribe the necessary treatment, which will help avoid surgical intervention.
Medication treatment
Often, a phlebologist is contacted by patients with the following problem: the veins on the legs itch. What to treat, the doctor will tell you after the examination.
He prescribes medications to relieve this problem:
- Anticoagulants "Heparin", "Warfanin" - do not allow blood clots to form.
- Thrombolytics “Fibronolysin”, “Streptokinase” - dissolve blood clots.
- Desensitizing agents "Cetrin", "Diazolin" - fight the main symptoms of the inflammatory process.
- Multivitamins "Undevit", "Supradin" - are intended for the general strengthening of the body.
- Sedatives "Tenoten", "Novopassit."
- Creams "Panthenol", "Bepanten" - have antimicrobial and wound healing effects.
- Hormonal ointments “Prednisolone”, “Lorinden”, “Tsinakort” - soothe the skin, relieve itching.
Physiotherapeutic procedures
Physiotherapy in the early stages of the disease helps relieve pain, burning and itching on the legs, stop the further development of pathology, and enable the protective effect of the patient's body.
In the treatment of varicose veins, the following physiotherapeutic procedures are used:
- electrophoresis;
- laser;
- darsonval;
- galvanization;
- lymphatic drainage;
- Ural federal district;
- UHF
Such treatment is symptomatic, it helps to relieve itching, but cannot eliminate the cause of this phenomenon - varicose veins.
General recommendations
To alleviate the condition of the patient with varicose veins and reduce itching, it is necessary to adhere to the following recommendations:
- shoes should be comfortable and light, without high heels, clothing loose;
- lose weight, if any;
- use compression stockings or elastic bandages;
- before going to bed, take a contrast shower;
- do baths using decoctions of herbs;
- do not use alkaline soap for washing;
- Do not visit the steam room;
- take walks.
Diet therapy for varicose veins
Nutritionists recommend that people who are sick with varicose veins eat more vegetables and fruits, legumes, and also beef liver. It will be quite useful to include egg whites, walnuts, dishes, which include grape leaves, in the patient's diet.
It is not recommended to eat salty and spicy foods, canned vegetables and meat, alcoholic beverages, coffee, fatty and fried foods. If there are no contraindications, the patient should drink at least one and a half liters of pure water per day.
Surgical treatment
If conservative treatment does not give the desired result, surgical removal of the affected vein is performed. Recently, surgical treatment has changed significantly. But still, the ultimate goal, as before, is the removal of the affected blood vessel.
Unlike classical phlebectomy, which requires large incisions along the veins, thanks to innovative methods, minimal incisions of the skin are made. This technique is called stripping. During surgery on the patient’s leg, only two small incisions are made, at the beginning and at the end of the removed vein. Then in these places the vein is cut and a specially designed probe with a metal tip is inserted into its lumen. If it is not there, the extractor is fixed with a thread to the wall of the vein and the vessel is pulled to the surface, bandaged and cut.
Prevention
It's no secret that any disease is much easier to prevent than then treat. In order to prevent varicose veins, you should lead a healthy lifestyle: eat right, do not eat harmful foods, move more, do physical exercises. It is recommended to abandon bad habits (smoking, drinking alcohol), if any. A good healthy sleep and a positive outlook on life are useful for the general condition.