Most people have heard or are aware of a disease such as varicose veins. However, not everyone knows that this pathological process affects not only the vessels of the legs, but can also affect the veins of the pelvic organs, which is especially important for women.
To counteract this disease, you first need to know what symptoms to look for. But it is also equally important to have an idea of what this type of varicose vein is, why it develops and also what are the ways to deal with it.
Essence of Pathology
Varicose veins are a pathology in which a series of pathological changes occur in the vessels, external or internal. First of all, we are talking about deformation, which means expansion and lengthening of the veins, but in addition to this, there is a thinning of the vascular wall, as well as the development of insufficiency of the valve system. All these factors lead to impaired blood circulation in the vascular bed, as a result of which the blood stagnates, and the vessels themselves begin to collapse due to excessive pressure.
The disease poses a minimal threat in the early stages, but as it progresses, the risk increases exponentially, especially when dealing with varicose veins in the pelvic area.
In such situations, the outflow of blood from the pelvic organs is disturbed, first of all it threatens the functioning of the female genital organs, as well as impaired reproductive functions.
Due to stagnation in the varicose veins affected by the pelvic veins, an excessive amount of blood accumulates, which comes from the external and internal genital organs of the pelvis. In this case, the blood does not "go away" well in the genital vein, a large master vessel. Due to stagnation, edema of internal organs and tissues occurs, an inflammatory process develops, and so on.
Provided that this form of varicose veins progresses, it is accompanied by strong and constant painful sensations, the development of various gynecological diseases, there is a real threat of infertility.
Causes of pelvic varicose veins in women
First of all it is important to understand that varicose veins of the small pelvis are mainly affected by women who have reached puberty. The older the age, the greater the likelihood of developing this disease. If we make an analogy, according to statistics, after 35 years varicose veins are diagnosed with a probability of about 50%, while at 20 this figure barely reaches 20%. Of course, predisposing factors play a very important role.
In general, the following reasons and factors for the development of varicose veins of the small pelvis can be distinguished:
- Genetics: Congenital predisposition is one of the main causes of all types of varicose veins. This is not the transmission of varicose veins itself, but a congenital predisposition to the weakness of the valve system, which makes itself felt over the years. The genetic factor also includes dysplasia or thinning of the vascular walls.
- Most often, varicose veins develop due to severe hormonal disorders. It can be a hormonal disorder during menopause or hormonal problems caused by prolonged use of potent hormone drugs.
- Pregnancy is the reason why women are more likely to develop all forms of varicose veins, especially the small pelvis. This factor is multifaceted, it combines both hormonal changes and increased loads, because a growing fetus increases the pressure exerted on the organs and vessels of the pelvic region.
- Overexertion: With a certain probability, varicose veins of the small pelvis can develop if a woman is engaged in hard physical work, exposes herself to grueling workouts or simply spends a lot of time on her feet due to her professional activities (hairdressers, salesmen, surgeons, cooks). . . This can also include overweight, because obesity leads to a constant increase in the load on the legs and pelvis, and cholesterol affects the state of blood vessels.
- The coin also has a downside, an excessively sedentary and sedentary lifestyle can also lead to varicose veins. Lack of the right level of mobility causes stagnant processes in the pelvic region.
- Intimate problems, mainly related to sex. This can be a long absence or systematic premature interruption of sexual intercourse, inability to reach orgasm, and so on.
- Various diseases of the genital and intrapelvic organs.
- Disorders of the cardiovascular system and blood coagulation, such as thrombosis.
Clinical picture
As mentioned above, pelvic varicose veins do not pose a serious threat in the early stages of development. At the same time, this form of pathology is very difficult to detect, because the main symptom of varicose veins is enlarged veins, it is seen mainly on the legs, in the pelvic region, the vessels manifest themselves mainly in the later stages of development, and not always.
However, the disease has some clinical signs and they intensify as varicose veins progress. Let's consider the clinical picture of the pathology:
- Unpleasant and painful sensations in the lower abdomen. Initially, this symptom is unstable and vague, mild pain rarely bothers, mainly with strong physical exertion during the day. The development of the disease leads to increased pain, they become intense, pulling in nature, they can be constant.
- Painful sensations during menstruation should be noted separately. They appear with the approach of menstruation, the maximum intensity usually falls on 1-2 days of menstruation. In this case, there may be a scarcity or, conversely, an excessive abundance of secretions.
- The development of varicose veins in the small pelvis is accompanied by pain and discomfort during intercourse. As before, the pain is initially insignificant, but intensifies as the disease progresses.
- The pathological process is accompanied by irregularities in the menstrual cycle, this is manifested not only in the scarcity or abundance of secretion, there are delays in menstruation or an increase in the duration of bleeding.
- Itching, burning sensation, swelling may appear in the vagina and on the external genitals. The external genital organs and mucous membranes can change color; in the later stages of development, cyanosis is present.
- In some cases, urination problems are noted, manifesting themselves in the inability to completely empty the bladder, pain when urinating and sometimes even urinary incontinence.
- In the later stages of the progression of varicose veins in the perineal region, as well as on the external genital organs, veins appear. The vessels are lumpy, twisted, often forming vascular "stars".
- With severe development of varicose veins, uterine bleeding may begin, the risk of impaired reproductive functions and the development of infertility increases.
Conservative approach to treatment
For a comprehensive treatment of varicose veins of the small pelvis, a woman must follow all the recommendations of the doctor, as well as change her lifestyle. First of all, you need to pay attention to the loads, if they are too high, they need to be reduced, if the patient leads an excessively sedentary lifestyle, it is necessary to play sports, go for walks more often and so on.
Patients with varicose veins are strongly advised to adapt their diet, consume as little junk food as possible (fried, smoked, sweet in large quantities, salty), alcohol, caffeine. It is better to give preference to fruits and vegetables, fermented milk products, cereals.
Also, as a preventive measure for the progression of the disease and for therapeutic purposes, doctors prescribe the use of compression underwear for patients with varicose veins.
Drug therapy
Despite the importance of the recommendations described above, drug therapy is still the basis of conservative treatment.
It is important to understand that all drugs, their dosage and duration of administration, are determined by the doctor.
Since the main goal is to normalize blood flow and maintain vascular health, treatment is based on drugs from the following groups:
- Venotonics - are responsible for toning the blood vessels.
- Anticoagulants: reduce the viscosity of the blood and prevent the formation of blood clots.
Traditional medicine
Traditional treatment methods are not so effective, but in combination with drug therapy they can significantly improve the patient's condition and have a positive effect on treatment in general. Among the popular methods, the following are particularly effective:
- Horse chestnut application to create special tinctures and creams.
- Apply apple cider vinegar for varicose veins.
- Decoctions of chamomile or larch.
It is important to understand that for the treatment of varicose veins of the small pelvis, in traditional medicine, recipes are mainly used in which decoctions and medicinal infusions are consumed orally. This is due to the fact that not all ointments, and even more so a compress, can be used in the pelvic area.
Operational methods of treatment
It is worth recognizing that conservative methods of treatment give really visible results mainly in the initial stages of varicose veins. At the same time, the problem can be fundamentally solved, and the disease can only be completely eliminated by surgery. In modern medicine, there are many variants of surgical treatment of varicose veins, consider the most common and effective types of operations:
- Sclerotherapy: a special chemical composition is introduced into the lumen of the affected vein, which has sclerosing, ie adhesive properties. As a result, the vein is glued together, then excluded from circulation and replaced by connective tissues.
- Laparoscopy- small punctures are made in the abdominal cavity, through which, with the help of surgical equipment, the ovarian vein is ligated for the purpose of its further excision.
- Endovascular surgery- the surgeon reaches the affected vessels through the femoral vein, after which, using special equipment, the ovarian vein is embolized.