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| Support Stockings |
Additional Reading:
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"Treating" varicose veins with support stockings is not really a treatment but is rather a way of trying to reduce the inflammation in the legs due to the vein pump failure. As the blood falls down the leg, by the stocking pressing the outside part of the leg, the inflammation is reduced. Therefore, the support stockings do not treat the veins but do reduce the severity and may well reduce the speed of deterioration of the varicose veins.
There are many different sorts of support stockings and it is important that, for venous disease, properly measured graduated pressure stockings are used. These are tightest at the foot and ankle and the compression reduces up the leg encouraging blood flow back towards the heart. It is essential when ordering these foot stockings, that a specialist examines the patient first to make sure that the arterial flow (circulation) is good enough to use the high levels of compression on the leg.
If somebody has poor circulation or low blood pressure in their legs, and a tight stocking is used, it is possible that gangrene of the foot or toes could be caused by the stocking reducing the blood low to critical levels.
All in all, although graduated pressure stockings are very useful for people who are too unfit for surgery (which is very rare), those awaiting surgery or used in people getting over varicose vein surgery. However, they have no role as a treatment of varicose veins in modern practice.
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