Varicose veins, those bulging red or purple lines on your legs, can be embarrassing and make you self-conscious. But regardless of how you feel about their appearance, it’s important that you know about their potential impacts on your overall health. At Beach Wellness MD, top vascular specialist Ali Golshan, MD has expertise in varicose vein issues, and you can trust him to advise you on the best course of action for your long-term well being.
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As you age, it’s common to see twisted, enlarged veins emerging in your legs, called varicose veins. Varicose veins are typically caused by the increased pressure on your leg veins as you move around over the course of a lifetime. Valves that normally allow blood to flow in only one direction become weakened and cause blood to pool instead, resulting in unsightly purplish webs.
Pregnant women have a high risk of developing varicose veins, due to the increased quantity of blood produced during a pregnancy. Varicose veins tend to run in families so you are at a higher risk of developing them if you have a family history of varicose veins. Being over weight is also a risk factor. Almost 1 in 4 adults in the United States will deal with varicose veins at some point in their lifetimes. People of any age can get varicose veins, but they’re much more common as you get older.
While the development of varicose veins over the years is often natural and potentially benign, they can have a negative impact on your overall health. They put you at an increased risk of conditions including:
- Bleeding issues
- Pain or swelling
- Ulcers, particularly around your ankles
Some patients won’t need treatment for their varicose veins, but others can benefit from some form of intervention.
Real treatment options
At Beach Wellness MD, our experienced care team offers multiple treatment options for dealing with varicose veins.
Still, varicose veins can’t always be reversed through lifestyle changes alone. Dr. Golshan also offers a range of nonsurgical treatment options from his Beverly Hills, Los Angeles office. Among the options you can choose from are:
- Varithena®, an FDA-approved injectable foam that collapses damaged veins while rerouting blood flow to healthier veins.
- Sclerotherapy, where one of various solutions are injected into your damaged veins to collapse them. Again, blood is rerouted to healthier veins. Downtime for most is minimal, although you should plan on no heavy exercise and compression stoking use for 48 hours after treatment.
These “leg makeover” procedures are minimally invasive and can be just as effective as vein surgeries. Treatments only take about 15 minutes and cause little to no discomfort. Downtime for most is minimal, although you should plan on keeping physical activity to low levels for the first week after your treatment to give your vascular system time to fully heal. Your full results are usually visible in about a month.
To schedule a consultation with Dr. Golshan to talk about your options for resolving your varicose veins, call Beach Wellness MD at 310-974-8767 or use our convenient online scheduling tool.
ABOUT DR. ALI GOLSHAN
Ali Golshan, MD, is a double board-certified leading vascular expert who specializes in in-office, minimally-invasive interventional radiology treatments at Beach Wellness MD. Dr. Golshan devotes personalized attention to each patient to develop an individualized treatment plan.
Dr. Golshan graduated summa cum laude as valedictorian from the University of California in Los Angeles (UCLA) with a Bachelor of Science in molecular biology. He then earned a Master of Business Administration from the UCLA Anderson School of Management and a Doctorate of Medicine from the UCLA David Geffen School of Medicine. Dr. Golshan completed a residency in radiology at UCLA and a fellowship in interventional radiology at the prestigious Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore.