Treatment of varicose veins with folk remedies

Patients often try to treat varicose veins at home with folk remedies - based on plant extracts, there are even preparations for external use and oral administration, many of which are positioned as means for completely eliminating venous diseases.They are widely advertised and sold without a doctor's prescription.Unfortunately, this attitude towards conventional methods for varicose veins is not entirely correct.

Phlebologists do not consider traditional methods as the main method of treating varicose veins of the lower extremities - traditional medicine can be effective in complex therapy and only relieve symptoms.

Why doesn't herbal medicine cure varicose veins?

The use of various herbal remedies cannot relieve the patient of varicose veins even in the initial stages of the disease.This cannot be achieved by drug therapy and other conservative methods recommended by official medicine.

Changes in the vein walls in varicose veins are irreversible.And not a single product of natural or pharmaceutical origin can eliminate these characteristic disorders or at least reliably stop their progression.There are currently no drugs that lead to the regression of phlebosclerosis and the restoration of the normal structure of the vascular wall.

In many cases, patients have a hereditary predisposition to varicose veins of the lower extremities.

Factors for the development of varicose veins:

• Genetically determined “weakness” of the vein walls, which can actually only withstand normal intravascular pressure without consequences.
• Few intravenous valves are present in the uterus, which may be due to a familial or even racial trait.

Of course, all this cannot be eliminated with the help of herbal remedies or other non-surgical techniques.There is therefore no need to talk about curing varicose veins with the help of conservative therapy, no matter what advertising and publications promise.

An improvement in the condition by taking medication or herbal remedies merely represents compensation for existing venous insufficiency. The duration of this remission period depends on many factors.And the continuation of herbal medicine by no means guarantees a low probability of recurrence of symptoms and prevention of the development of complications.

However, herbal products can still be used in the complex treatment of varicose veins of the lower extremities.In addition, some medicinal extracts formed the basis for a number of modern medicines.So, patients may refuse to independently prepare decoctions and infusions for oral administration.Many people prefer standardized medicines with adjusted dosage, easy administration and predictable effects.

What effect do herbal medicine and traditional methods have?

For varicose veins, chamomile, horse chestnut, rue, horsetail, dandelion, lumbago (sleeping grass), bird knotweed (knotweed) and a number of other plants are most often used for medicinal purposes.

Chamomile helps relieve the symptoms of varicose veins in the early stages - it reduces the inflammatory process and the visibility of the affected veins.Chamomile tea and compresses have a minimum of contraindications and can be recommended by specialists for complex therapy.

Dandelion is a popular remedy for varicose veins.Dried roots and stems are added to tea and also while bathing.It relieves mild pain, but has no therapeutic effect.

The effect of folk remedies

Herbal medicine has a limited effect on affected veins:

• Phlebotonic effect – increasing venous tone.However, do not forget that with varicose veins, the structure of the affected vessels changes irreversibly.Not only does the amount of connective tissue increase significantly in their walls (which is called phlebosclerosis), but the structure of the muscle layer is also disrupted.Therefore, already deformed veins do not respond adequately to phlebotonic substances.Their lumen can be narrowed primarily with the help of effective compounds - for example ergot alkaloids.However, the side effects of such herbal medicine will be significant.Therefore, phlebotonic plants are more commonly used to alleviate the severity of venous insufficiency and for preventive purposes.
• Densification of the vein, which somewhat limits the deformation process.This effect can be used in complex prevention for people at risk.However, it will not be possible to stop or even reverse existing varicose veins in this way.
• Antithrombotic and disaggregating effect, reducing the risk of thrombosis and having a positive effect on microcirculation.However, this effect can only be expected with sufficiently long-term use of decoctions and infusions.In addition, blood thinning does not occur locally in the area of the varicose veins, but throughout the entire body.In some patients, this can lead to complications from other diseases.
• Anti-inflammatory and wound healing effect, manifested mainly in local herbal medicine for trophic ulcers and eczematous venous dermatitis.However, without eliminating venostasis (the main cause of these complications), permanent normalization of the skin condition is impossible.

As you can see, the symptoms of the disease only decrease temporarily and varicose veins do not disappear completely.

Apitherapy for varicose veins

Apitherapy or “bee therapy” refers to the use of bee venom and various bee products for medical purposes.Recommendations for the use of honey and propolis as compresses for trophic ulcers and the presence of visible varicose veins are widespread.Some also resort to apitoxin therapy sessions, specifically placing bee stings in the projection of the most affected vessels.

To relieve swelling and pain, honey and propolis are used in the form of compresses.

Apitherapy is a classic folk method for treating varicose veins of the legs.Let's consider the expected effect and the possibility of its occurrence:

• Improves tissue trophism and provides them with vitamins and microelements contained in honey.In reality, there is no improvement - the penetration of the components through the skin is insignificant to speak of a significant therapeutic effect.In addition, a dense honey mass can clog the pores and thereby worsen the condition of the dermis.
• In the presence of a trophic ulcer - the antimicrobial effect of using honey compresses.The easily digestible carbohydrates of this beekeeping product can become a breeding ground for opportunistic microorganisms.This can lead to the exact opposite effect, especially with skin dysbiosis, which occurs with varicose veins and against the background of reduced local immunity.
• Anti-inflammatory effect of honey compresses.Yes, honey can reduce the severity of non-specific inflammation.However, in the case of varicose veins, decisive changes occur in the wall of the subcutaneous vessel and biologically active substances are still not absorbed well enough through the skin.Honey is a highly allergenic product;It is possible that local allergic reactions similar to inflammation may occur - this does not improve the condition of the legs.
• Combating thrombosis (with apitoxin therapy), which is explained by the presence of a substance similar to hirudin in bee venom.To take advantage of this effect, apitherapists often plant stinging bees on areas of veins affected by thrombophlebitis.In some cases, this actually activates thrombolysis (reabsorption of the blood clot).However, such an aggressive and not fully controlled action can provoke thromboembolism and increase the severity of phlebitis.
• Improvement of microcirculation under the influence of the peptides contained in bee venom.In fact, these biologically active substances contribute to the expansion of capillaries and blood circulation to the areas inflamed after bee stings.Bee sting sessions can potentially improve the condition of the soft tissues of the legs affected by varicose veins.But apitoxin therapy is also accompanied by inflammation and swelling, which worsen existing symptoms.The wounds created after the bite has been removed serve as a portal of entry for bacteria - there is a risk of developing erysipelas and other very undesirable infectious complications.
• Restoration of the venous walls under the influence of bee venom.With repeated punctures, the peptides and other substances it contains change all the tissues in the area of developing inflammation.The skin becomes thicker, the subcutaneous tissue becomes coarser, the walls of the subcutaneous vessels thicken and varicose veins become less noticeable.However, this does not mean that uneven phlebosclerosis and the nodular deformations of the veins that appear against its background disappear completely.They are simply compensated for, which is accompanied by a temporary stabilization of the course of chronic venous insufficiency.And valvular sclerosis is not eliminated by apitherapy.

Although apitherapy is a very effective means of traditional medicine, in varicose veins it is fraught with the development of infectious complications.Restoration of the vein walls is not possible with such treatment;It is only possible to stabilize the course of the disease and alleviate the symptoms.

Do leeches treat varicose veins?

Leeches have long been used to treat blood and vascular diseases.The risk of thrombosis is reduced and pain is temporarily reduced.

Treatment with leeches (hirudotherapy) is a popular method of treating varicose veins and other vascular diseases, eliminates symptoms, improves tissue trophism, but the effect is limited in time:

• Reduced swelling and visible pigmentation.
• Sucking a leech reduces the risk of thrombosis.This is explained by the antithrombotic effect of several substances in their saliva: the anticoagulant hirudin, the enzymes collagenase and apyrase with disaggregating properties.However, the leech cannot act on blood clots already present in the veins and does not reduce the likelihood of thromboembolism in thrombophlebitis.In addition, the proteins from their saliva decompose quite quickly, so one cannot expect long-term antithrombotic effects from hirudotherapy.
• The sucking of blood by a leech reduces intravascular pressure.This relief of local blood flow is temporary and cannot relieve the patient of venous stagnation with varicose veins.
• Some substances in leech saliva have a vasodilating effect and cause small vessels to dilate.In some cases this helps to improve microcirculation.Venous insufficiency caused by varicose veins is accompanied by overstretching of the last sections of the venous network due to blood stasis.Therefore, additional dilation of small vessels may not have the best impact on the condition of the microvasculature.In the case of spider veins, the use of leeches can actually make the situation worse.

Hirudotherapy is currently more physiotherapeutic than traditional methods.However, due to the high probability of complications - erysipelas - phlebologists are still very careful about such treatment.

Venous congestion that develops with varicose veins leads to disruption of the nutrition of all tissues of the limb, including the skin.The effectiveness of local immune factors decreases, the composition of the microflora on the surface of the epidermis changes.All this is a prerequisite for the development of infectious complications.

The suction of leeches further disrupts the function of the skin barrier.And once severed, the gaping wound can even become a portal of entry for pathogenic and opportunistic bacteria.And the most likely infectious complication of hirudotherapy will be erysipelas.In addition, the proteins from leech saliva are foreign to the body and can potentially act as allergens.

Hirudotherapy can neither relieve varicose veins of the lower extremities nor lead to lasting compensation for venous insufficiency.Increases the risk of infectious dermatitis and erysipelas.

How do I deal with the illness?

Any conservative therapy for varicose veins only serves to relieve the symptoms.The main effect is to reduce the severity of venous stagnation and correct complications.No conservative technique can prevent further progression of the disease and eliminate the main cause of chronic venous insufficiency.

Self-medication is dangerous!

A late visit to the doctor and self-medication for varicose veins significantly increase the likelihood of complications:

• Thrombosis of superficial and deep veins with the possible development of thromboembolism.Traveling blood clots block the arteries, which can lead to heart attacks, strokes and dysfunction of many organs.Pulmonary embolism is one of the deadliest diseases.
• Trophic ulcer prone to chronicity and recurrence.
• Venous eczema is a severe, protracted dermatitis with an infectious-allergic basis.It significantly worsens the quality of life and can be complicated by erysipelas.
• Spontaneous ruptures of varicose veins with the risk of blood loss.

In hospitals, varicose veins are treated surgically - the entire affected vessel and its main tributaries are removed (or completely switched off from the bloodstream).As a result, the patient eliminates pathological blood secretions, eliminates venous stagnation and improves tissue nutrition.

Patients currently have the option of choosing equally effective minimally invasive intravenous procedures instead of classic operations.This includes:

1. EVLO is obliteration of the affected vein (i.e., irreversible closure of its lumen) following intravascular laser treatment.
2. RFO is an extinction caused by exposure to radio frequency waves.
3. Sclerotherapy is the introduction of a special sclerosing agent into the lumen of a vessel, which causes adhesion and subsequent obliteration of the vein.

The treatment method is selected depending on the indications, taking into account the stage of varicose veins and the presence of concomitant diseases.Uncomplicated varicose veins are usually eliminated using sclerotherapy or RFO, while advanced varicose veins can be eliminated using laser technologies. Laser treatment of varicose veins produces excellent results at any stage of the disease.