Vein Center in Beaumont

Providing Treatment Options for Your Vein Issues

As bodies get older, veins can become less able to perform their function properly. Most of the time, this is a result of the veins not having enough strength to push blood all the way back up to the heart, causing some of it to seep back out and pool back in the veins, resulting in a rope-like, bulged, and thickened appearance. A swollen vessel is known as a varicose vein and is the result of increased pressure from reflux. The Vein Center at Baptist Hospitals of Southeast Texas provides treatment for varicose veins and venous insufficiency.

What Causes Vein Issues?

Veins are not the only body parts to show signs of aging. Sometimes valves within the heart do not close properly, allowing blood to flow back down into the veins in a condition called reflux. Venous issues such as these become increasingly common over the age of 50, affecting around half the population and causing aches and pain, fatigue in the legs, heaviness, and unsightly vein protrusion.

Types of Treatments

In order for varicose veins to be resolved, the flow of blood must be redirected to healthier veins.

There are two popular ways of achieving this:

• Vein ablation – This minimally invasive treatment involves a local anesthetic being applied to the vein, after which the interventional radiologist will insert a thin catheter into the vein and guide it up the great saphenous vein in the thigh. Using a laser or radio frequency energy, they will heat the vein and seals it closed. Once the diseased vein is closed, other healthy veins take over to carry blood from the leg, re-establishing normal flow
• Injection sclerotherapy – Uses a fine needle is used to inject the vein with a solution which shrinks the vein. This is often done after vein ablation to improve the appearance of any remaining spider veins

Learn More

If you believe you are a candidate for a venous procedure, call our Special Procedures and Scheduling Line at 409.212.5825. For answers to some frequently asked questions, view our Vein Center brochure here.