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When do by varicose vein , optical maser therapy remain the proficient option , a newfangled study says .

researcher in the study examined 798 player who hadvaricose veinsand were treated at 11 vascular operating theater centers in the United Kingdom , between November 2008 and October 2012 . The participant underwent one of three types of treatments : closing off the veins with a laser , injecting a drug " froth " into the vena or surgically removing the vein .

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After six month , the research worker compared the outcomes , looking at how well the treatments worked and at their complicatedness rates , as well as how the participants rated the modification in their quality of aliveness since their treatment .

" The main findings indicated that laser therapy was the preferred treatment for varicose veins , " read study author Dr. Julie Brittenden , a professor in vascular surgical operation at the University of Aberdeen in Scotland . " We found that all three treatment slenderize symptoms associate with varicose veins , but there were fewer complications after optical maser treatment . " [ 7 Beauty Trends That Are Bad for Your Health ]

What causes varicose nervure ?

A photo of a patient with their surgical team after surgery. The patient is sat on a hospital bed and the team is gathered around him.

Varicose vein areblood vesselsthat have become swollen , expand and twisted . Improperly working valves in the vein cause the disorder , Brittenden excuse . In people who have this condition , rake returns up to the heart from the veins in the branch because of the muscle contraction of the calf muscular tissue , she pronounce . unremarkably , valves in these vein forbid pedigree from menstruate backwards , down towards the feet .

" People with varicose vein have leaky valve , which means that some blood menstruate half-witted and pools in the venous blood vessel , causing them to become enlarged , " she said .

The routine called intravenous laser ablation , orlaser therapy , uses heating plant generated by optical maser Energy Department to seal off faulty line of descent vessels , divert blood menses immediately to nearby healthy vena .

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Foam discussion involves injecting drugs into a blood watercraft . The practice of medicine , when immix with air , cause the vessel wall to thicken , which also helps to seal off blood stream . The late cogitation showed that froth was less likely than the other treatments to completely close a vein that had tattling valves , which may increase the likelihood that a patient will involve future treatment , Brittenden tell .

In the sketch , about 1 per centum of patients who underwent treatment with a optical maser experienced complications such as lumpiness , skin defile and spiritlessness . About 6 percent of those who received the foam discourse , and 7 percent of those who underwent surgery experienced such complication , according to the discipline .

The investigator also found that successful ablation of the great saphenous vein occurred in 83 percentage of those who received the laser discourse and 84.4 pct of the player who undergo surgery .   These number were importantly higher than the 54.6 pct who had such successful ablation after the foam treatment . The nifty saphenous nervure , the long in the body , runs along the distance of the leg .

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The subject area appears in today ’s ( September 24 ) issue of the New England Journal of Medicine .

Dr. Kevin McMullen , a vascular surgeon at Surgical Hospital of Oklahoma who was not take with the study , said he agreed with Brittenden ’s conclusion . " Laser is preferred over surgery or froth due to higher succeeder rate with the least amount of complications , " he say .

optical maser therapy works well than froth on big veins , as the success rates for froth discourse aggravate with increase vein size of it , McMullen say . However , surgery may be the best choice for patients who have antecedently had vein procedure , or who have anatomical issues , such as veins that are very close to the skin or are larger than three - quarter of an inch ( 20 millimeters ) in diameter , he said .

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Can varicose veins be prevented ?

Varicose vein treatment is not done just for cosmetic reasons , Brittenden said . " People with varicose veins often suffer from ache and discomfort , " she told Live Science . " The condition can also cause swelling of the ankle , skin alteration and sometimes ulcers . "

Both valet and women get varicose veins , she said . The condition is more coarse in meaning woman , old patient , fleshy people and those who stand for long geological period . It is also more dominant in people who have a family history of varicose veins .

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People ca n’t foreclose varicose mineral vein from forming , but may be able to stay their formation or forestall subsist varicose veins from getting bad , according to the National Institutes of Health . The NIH recommends that people avoid stick out or sitting for a longsighted time without take breaks ; avoid crossing their branch when sit ; and keep their legs raised when sit , resting or sleeping .

Losing weight and doing exercisethat works the leg musculus can also assist , the NIH said .

Brittenden say that she and her team contrive to follow the study participants for five years , as foresightful - term results are important in determining long - term costs and consequences of each of the handling , such as recurrent varicose vein .

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