If you are one of the many people who suffer from constantly swollen legs and ankles, you already know what a bother they are. The swelling makes it difficult to stand or walk for long periods of time, and they’re occasionally painful as well. But if you’re like most people, you console yourself by thinking that the swelling is nothing serious – just a normal sign of aging or something like that – and you can live with the minor inconvenience and discomfort. Right?
Wrong. According to our Louisiana vein doctor, chronic swelling of the legs and ankles (meaning that it happens more than once or twice a month) can be a symptom of something far more serious: vein disease. And vein disease can quickly escalate to produce even more serious symptoms that can negatively impact your overall health and well-being.
What should New Orleans residents know about swollen legs and ankles?
The most common cause of chronically swollen legs and ankles is a vein disease called chronic venous insufficiency, or CVI. If you have CVI, the tiny valves that enable your veins to pump blood to your heart and lungs have become damaged, and have stopped working properly. Instead of flowing to the heart, blood is allowed to flow “backwards” into the veins and pools there. This causes a buildup of fluids and increased pressure, which in turn causes the swelling.
CVI is also a common cause of varicose veins, but even if they have not begun to appear, CVI negatively affects your entire circulatory system, and thus your overall state of health. CVI can also be related to more serious diseases such as deep vein thrombosis (DVT), and put you at risk of developing blood clots in the larger, deeper veins of your legs. If these blood clots break loose from where they formed and travel to the lungs and brain, the results can actually be fatal.
But even “just” swollen legs and ankles can disrupt your health
When swelling and accompanying discomfort and pain occurs in your legs and ankles, you start to become less mobile, and get less exercise. Inactivity has a profound effect on your overall health, and has been cited as a major cause of conditions such as diabetes, obesity, and heart disease. If the pain and discomfort become severe, you may start to miss work and want to spend less time with your friends and family. On a psychological level, those feelings of not wanting to go out because your legs hurt erode your self-confidence and make it hard to get out of bed in the mornings, and can lead to depression.
So what can you do about it?
The first thing you should do if you suffer from swollen legs and ankles is find out what the cause is. And this is as simple as scheduling a venous health screening at one of the best New Orleans vein treatment centers, La Bella Vita Laser and Vein Center. These screenings are fast, painless, non-invasive, and effective. Using modern diagnostic tools such as Doppler ultrasound, Dr. Randall S. Juleff can see beneath the skin, and pinpoint any blockages or disease in your veins.
If vein disease is found, treatment is equally fast and painless, and can be done right in the office. Modern Covington vein treatment is performed using minimally invasive methodologies such as sclerotherapy and endovenous laser treatment to remove the cause of your vein disease, and thus remove the cause of the swelling and discomfort. So give us a call and let Dr. Juleff and his trained staff help to eliminate your swollen legs and ankles, and at the same time improve your overall health.
Learn more about Why Swollen Legs and Ankles Can Hold You Back In Life
Learn more about Leg Swelling Treatment
