Varicose veins Varicose veins are veins which have become swollen, lumpy and mis-shapen.

In this article

What are varicose veins? Symptoms

Causes and risk factors Treatment and recovery

Any vein in the body can become varicose, but they are most commonly seen in the calf and up the leg into the groin.

The legs may ache, feel heavy and be uncomfortable. In severe cases, the skin over the vein becomes dry, itchy and thin, and an ulcer may develop

The veins become more obvious in warm weather and when you stand up.

When the one-way valves in the veins don't work, blood flows back down causing them to bulge and become visibly swollen and distorted.

They're rare in people under the age of 20, but become more common with age. Around one in five people will develop varicose veins and women are more often affected than men.

The tendency to develop varicose veins can run in families and they are more likely to develop in pregnancy or conditions where the abdominal pressure increases, such as being obese or chronically constipated. Often they occur for no apparent reason.

Walking regularly to exercise the legs and keep the blood flowing helps to prevent varicose veins.

Standing for long periods and being overweight increases the risk of varicose veins, so these should be avoided.

Varicose veins aren't usually serious but complications such as inflammation within the vein called superficial thrombophlebitis, and eczema or skin ulcers over the lower leg may result.

• Raise your legs higher than your chest after standing for long periods
• Compression stockings help prevent the veins swelling
• Mild cases of varicose veins can be treated with sclerotherapy, which involves injecting a chemical into the affected vein to close it. Other treatments include laser therapy. Vein stripping is used for recurrent or more severe cases
• Complementary therapies include applying witch hazel solution to the legs and using extract of horse chestnut in a cream or supplement may help the skin

This article was last medically reviewed by Dr Gill Jenkins in April 2009.