Leg Health Information

Leg problems are widespread throughout the world, but what most people don’t know is that approximately 90% of leg disorders originate within the veins. If you have tired, aching, swollen legs, or if you see the beginning of varicose veins, this page will help you learn how to improve the health of your venous circulation. Vein problems can progressively worsen over time and can affect your health for the rest of your life.

Much can be done to decrease the risk of developing venous disorders. We believe that understanding the cause of venous disease is an important first step. Are you at risk? Please read on…

Causes and Risk Factors

• Long-distance travel
• Heredity or age over 40
• Prolonged sitting or standing
• Pregnancy
• Obesity or a sedentary lifestyle
• Surgery or trauma
• Infectious disease

Danger Signals

In most cases, leg problems do not just occur ‘out of the blue.’ There are typical warning signs, such as:

• Heavy, hot, or tired legs
• A feeling of tension, cramps, fatigue, or stabbing in the calves
• Swollen ankles
• First signs of small varicose veins

The Circulatory System

The heart is the main pump of the circulatory system. It is the muscle that pumps oxygen-rich blood through the arteries and into tiny capillaries, where body cells exchange the oxygen for carbon dioxide. The blood then enters the veins, which carry it back to the heart.

Venous Return

The body has a number of ways to help blood return to the heart. Just as the arterial system uses the power of the heart to drive fresh blood into the tissues, the calf muscle acts as a ‘second heart’ by contracting and relaxing as a person walks.

One-way valves in the superficial and deep veins help blood flow back to the heart. The deep system handles up to 90% of the venous blood volume and is the high-pressure system of the venous circulation in the legs. The superficial system handles the other 10% and is the low-pressure system. When calf muscles relax, the valves close to prevent blood from flowing backwards into the lower part of the vein. These valves are fragile and can be easily damaged. Other ‘pumps’—such as the ankle, the foot, and the diaphragm—also help push blood toward the heart.

Venous Problems in the Legs

Venous insufficiency is a condition in which the valves of the veins fail to function. This interferes with venous return to the heart and causes blood to pool in the vein. Factors leading to venous insufficiency include venous stasis and changes or damage to the vein wall or valve. Venous insufficiency can lead to varicose veins, phlebitis, thrombophlebitis, blood clots, and changes in the skin, including leg ulcers.

Descriptions of Venous Problems

Varicose veins are visibly enlarged veins that are often bluish in color and may appear twisted. They are caused by the pooling of blood in a damaged vein and can sometimes be painful. In the early stages, the legs may feel tired, heavy, achy, or tense.

Phlebitis is the inflammation of a vein wall, and is the most common problem associated with varicose veins. Symptoms can include swelling, redness, warmth, or pain in the affected area.

Superficial thrombophlebitis is the inflammation of a vein caused by a blood clot. Symptoms are similar to phlebitis.

Deep Vein Thrombosis (DVT)

A Deep Vein Thrombosis (DVT) is a blood clot in one of the deep veins. About 25% of DVTs move away from the deep veins and travel through the bloodstream into the lungs. This is known as a pulmonary embolism, and can have life-threatening consequences. Symptoms include:

• Pain and tenderness in one leg
• Swelling in one leg
• Increased warmth and redness in one leg
• Shortness of breath and fainting
• Pain in the chest

Chronic Venous Insufficiency (CVI)

Chronic Venous Insufficiency (CVI) is a collective term used to describe a long-standing condition involving impaired venous return in varying degrees of severity. Symptoms include:

• Edema (swelling)
• Feeling of heaviness in the legs
• Pain or cramps in the calves
• Skin discolorations
• Dermatitis (skin problems)
• Dry or weeping eczema
• Venous leg ulcer

A venous leg ulcer is an open wound that usually forms near the ankle and is due to chronic poor circulation. The ulcer has a weeping, raw appearance, and the surrounding skin is dry, itchy, and reddish-brown in color. Venous leg ulcers are usually slow to heal.

Why Compression Works

Compression therapy is the application of external pressure to the limb to reduce venous pressure within it. This means wearing socks or stockings that are specially designed to support your veins and increase circulation. To be most effective, the socks or stockings should be put on at the start of your day and removed before you go to bed.

Remember that the heart pumps blood against gravity up the veins of the legs. As a person walks, the regular contraction and relaxation of the calf muscles around the veins help move blood toward the heart. Some people have an inherited weakness of the vein walls or valves, which creates additional challenges to venous circulation. Wearing compression socks or stockings is vital for the prevention and treatment of varicose veins and other circulatory problems, especially for individuals who are at risk.

Why is Compression Graduated?

Graduated (or gradient) compression works so that the pressure is greatest at the ankle and decreases gradually up the leg and body. This pressure is needed to counter the effects of the pressure in the vein, and it is measured in mmHg. The complete understanding of how compression works remains unknown—however, no one can deny the benefits.

Your Doctor or Therapist Can Help

Effective methods for the treatment of venous disorders are readily available. Your physician can provide a diagnosis to correctly assess the course and severity of your condition, and to take appropriate therapeutic measures.

When Does a Physician Prescribe Compression Stockings?

A physician or therapist prescribes compression socks or stockings for any active vein disorder of the leg, or as a preventative measure when risk factors are present. They are also prescribed after surgery for patients who are not confined to bed.

Filling your prescription is easy. Just select from one of our brands (JOBST, Sigvaris, Mediven, Juzo, Activa) and select the proper compression level:

• 8–15 mmHg (Light or Mild)
• 15–20 mmHg (Moderate)
• 20–30 mmHg (Firm)
• 30–40 mmHg (Extra-Firm)

Benefits of Medical Compression Stockings

People around the world feel better while wearing graduated compression stockings and socks, especially those who spend too much time in sedentary sitting or standing positions. Getting the benefits of gradient compression is as easy as wearing compression support stockings or socks.

Graduated support stockings remain the standard in the management of chronic venous disease. Graduated compression delivers a squeezing to the leg that is tightest at the ankle, decreasing gradually up the leg. While the exact mechanism of action remains elusive, compression is believed to provide two primary benefits to individuals with chronic venous insufficiency.

Perhaps the most important effect is that compression is believed to increase the pressure in the tissues beneath the skin, reducing excess leakage of fluid from the capillaries and increasing absorption of tissue fluid by the capillaries and lymphatic vessels. Compression therefore reduces and helps prevent swelling.

Secondly, compression reduces the ability of the superficial veins in the leg to expand and overfill with blood, which helps prevent blood in these veins from flowing backward and causing congestion. Congestion in the leg accounts for the leg complaints, swelling, and skin changes common in people with venous problems.

What Compression Level Is Right For Me?