1.800.Varicose is pleased to welcome Cosmetic Vein Centers of Texas to our network.

Some information about Dr. Skellenger:

Dr. Skellenger is Board Certified in Vascular Surgery and has been in the practice of treating vascular disease since 1981. The native Houstonian completed medical school at Baylor College of Medicine in 1976, and trained in vascular surgery under Dr. Michael E. DeBakey until 1981. He remains a clinical faculty member in the Michael E. DeBakey Department of Surgery in the Texas Medical Center. He is an expert in percutaneous techniques using ultrasonic guidance which has revolutionized the treatment of venous disease. Dr. Skellenger has been a Fellow of the American College of Surgeons since 1984.

With these techniques, he has improved the cosmetic results with limited down time and inconvenience for the patient. He has also been able to move the treatments from the operating room to the in-office surgery room where a local anesthesia can be used instead of general anesthesia.

Read more at their profile or at their website http://www.cosmeticveincenters.com/

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I found the following Q & A at www.canada.com.

Q: I am a 74-year-old male Caucasian in relatively good health with a BMI that is good for my height. Over the past year or so, I have suffered occasional leg cramps, sometimes several times per night, that require me to walk them out.

Lately, they have become a nightly occurrence. My doctor said there is really nothing he can do for me. Might he not be aware of possible treatments?

A: Leg cramps at night are a common problem and may or may not be a serious issue. Most people that come to their doctors with leg cramps think there’s something wrong with their circulation — a reasonable concern that needs to be sorted out with a clinical exam and maybe some testing.

The older we get the more we’re subject to circulation problems, but don’t assume that because you’re older, it is a circulation problem.

Probably the most important thing is to get all of the details: when the pain started, what makes it worse, what makes it better. In this man’s case, it’s an increasing problem over some time period, so that would suggest to me it’s not the sort of thing that you see when people have blood-supply problems.

If he complained that when he went for a walk, he would get leg cramps, you would start thinking about how well or poor his circulation is, particularly if when he rests the cramps go away and he can start walking again.

If he’s a smoker, he could be predisposed to such problems because circulation problems are much more common in older smokers.

Has he injured himself in some way, perhaps started jogging recently and ever since then has been having leg cramps at night?

You can overstretch your calf muscles and describe the pain as cramps, but actually what you’re having is calf pain at night.

Leg cramps can be related to varicose veins, a circulation problem. People with varicose veins have veins that don’t function as efficiently as they used to, so you get pooling of blood that may give you aches or pains that feel like leg cramps.

Exercise tends to be helpful.

By Dr. David Moores, For Canwest News Service

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Varicose eczema, also called stasis, occurs more often in later life and is due to poor circulation. Itchy and irritated patches form on the skin, often around the ankles. An effective and hypoallergenic emollient cream such as Kalmaderm Emollient cream can be useful in soothing the red and itchy skin. Varicose eczema affects the lower legs people in their middle to late years. It is caused by poor circulation. Commonly the skin around the ankles is affected, becoming speckled, itchy and inflamed. The most common treatments are emollients and steroid creams. If varicose eczema is left untreated, the skin can break down, resulting in an ulcer.

Varicose eczema is due to increased pressure within the veins in the leg. The pressure builds up because valves in the veins fail to work. This increased pressure allows a chemical called fibrin to escape from small blood-vessels in the skin. Fibrin is then deposited around the blood-vessels, forming a barrier which prevents oxygen and other essential nutrients from penetrating through to the skin where they are needed. Lack of oxygen and other substances causes the eczema. The damage to the small blood-vessels from the high pressure in the veins causes the release of red blood cells into the skin. This causes the brown and purple pigmentation. Rubbing and scratching worsen the eczema. The incorrect use of disinfectants and certain creams may result in further aggravating the problem. Ulcers are more likely to occur in older people, where the circulation to the leg is poorer.

Topical medical applications in varicose eczema often cause eczema in other parts of the body. Researchers in France revealed that patients with leg ulcers or varicose eczema commonly suffer from contact eczema due to the allergic reactions to local applications of pharmaceutical preparations. This contact allergy may concern not only the active ingredient but also the excipient, the preservative, or even the perfume. They warned that in all cases of leg ulcers, of varicose eczema, but also of badly healed ulcers, tests should be carried out and urged the pharmaceutical industry to perfect non-allergenic preparations. Whilst varicose eczema is a chronic and often debilitating condition there are several alternatives available which have been shown to help the underlying cause (ie. varicose veins and poor blood supply) and alleviate the irritation of the resulting eczema.

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Varicose veins are enlarged veins that can be flesh colored, dark purple or blue. They often look like cords and appear twisted and bulging. They are swollen and raised above the surface of the skin. Varicose veins are commonly found on the backs of the calves or on the inside of the leg. During pregnancy, varicose veins called hemorrhoids can form in the vagina or around the anus. Spider veins are explained on another page.

The function of the heart is to pump blood to supply oxygen and important nutrients to all parts your body. Arteries carry blood from the heart towards the body parts, while veins carry blood from the body parts back to the heart. As the blood is pumped back to the heart, your veins act as one-way valves to prevent the blood from flowing backwards. If the one-way valve becomes weak, some of the blood can leak back into the vein, collect there, and then become congested or clogged. This congestion will cause the vein to abnormally enlarge. These enlarged veins can be either varicose veins or spider veins.

As mentioned varicose veins appear as swollen veins which rise above the surface of your skin. They appear as dark purple or blue in color, and can look like cords or very twisted and bulging. They are found most often on the backs of the calves or on the inside of the leg, anywhere from the groin to the ankle. Can you see and feel varicose veins? Yes, Large varicose veins can be visible, bulging, palpable (can be felt by touching), long, and dilated (greater than 4 millimeters in diameter). Varicose veins affect 1 out of 2 people over age 50. They are more common in women than men. Hemorrhoids are a type of varicose vein. Spider veins are like varicose veins, but they are smaller.
Exercising, losing weight, elevating your legs when resting and not crossing them when sitting can help keep varicose veins from getting worse. Wearing loose clothing and avoiding long periods of standing can also help. If varicose veins are painful or you don’t like the way they look, your doctor may recommend procedures to remove them.
The description of varicose veins as a clinical entity can be traced back as early as the fifth century BC. Forefathers of medicine including Hippocrates and Galen described the disease and treatment modalities, which are still used today.1 Throughout the centuries, surgical treatments have evolved from large, open surgeries to minimally invasive approaches.

See these sites for more information:
National Institute of Health – http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health/dci/Diseases/vv/vv_whatis.html

Womens Health – USA: http://www.womenshealth.gov/FAQ/varicose-spider-veins.cfm#A

Wikipedia – http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Varicose_veins

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