Traditionally
surgeons treated varicose veins by surgically stripping the
saphenous veins in the thigh and legs under general
anesthesia in the hospital. This procedure has about 6 to 8
week recovery time due to extent of the procedure and
associated pain.
Now a
days our patients have much less invasive and relatively
painless options of management.
This
minimally invasive procedure is called endoluminal ablation.
This can be done by radiofrequency and laser. We prefer
Radiofrequency as it is much less painful then laser.
We call
this procedure Vein Closure Procedure. We simply insert a
catheter in the vein like starting an IV and use
radiofrequency catheter to heat up the vein from inside and
"poof" the vein is closed and now it can not
reflux any more to swell the legs. The quality of life
improves significantly. we do this in the office under local
anesthesia. Walk in for the procedure and walk out like
lunch break surgery. Most insurances including Medicare and
Medi-Cal cover this procedure.
You
can see the Closure procedure video below.
