Varicose veins are veins that have become enlarged and swollen. They are dark purple or blue in appearance. This condition is commonly directed at the veins on the legs, especially found on the back of the calves or on the inside of the leg. They occur elsewhere, too, like there is esophageal varices, gastric varices, intestinal varices and scrotal varices.

There are no serious complications of varicose veins but it is very painful and the sufferer finds difficulty in standing and walking. They also itch a lot which leads to scratching and, as a result, formation of ulcers. They are not a pleasant sight to behold, making the legs appear unsightly.

Surgical treatment is the traditional method of removing these troublesome veins. This is done under general anaesthesia whereby a cut at the groin is made and a special wire inserted into the vein. The vein is then tied to the wire and taken all the way to the calf or ankle and then pulled out. This way, the varicose vein is taken out of the body.

Varicose veins usually occur in the legs while spider veins can be seen on any part of the body but are usually found on the face and the legs. Spider veins are identified by their pattern of reddish to purplish small veins. However, both varicose veins and spider veins deteriorate with age.

Yes, they are.

The varicose veins condition is caused mainly due to the enlargement of veins. The leg muscles pump the veins to return blood to the heart. The reflux of the blood into the veins is prevented by leaflet veins which are part of the valves. But on the enlargement of veins, the leaflets do not meet properly and therefore, do not function to keep the blood out. Because of this inaction, blood accumulates in the veins causing even further enlargement.

Varicose veins can appear early in childhood but studies show that they have a tendency to appear after the age of 20.

No, compression stockings have no negative effect on muscles. In fact, the wearer is told to move a lot which develops the leg muscles.

Sclerotherapy is a procedure that works toward closing the troublesome veins. It has been in use for more than 150 years now. The way it works is that a chemical solution is injected into the vessels and this causes the veins to shrink and close permanently. The blood is then re-routed to the heart using other healthy veins. This treatment might have side-effects like bruising, redness and itching at injected spot.

If your varicose veins are painful, then removing them is the only alternative. Surgical procedure is one method of doing this. Non-surgical treatments are also there. These include sclerotherapy and elastic stockings. If you have mild varicose veins, you can avoid making them worse by exercising and losing weight, by keeping your legs in a raised position and avoid crossing them when sitting.