varicose veins in nurses

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hi, people! I just want to ask for help. aside from leg pain that we experience, we nurses are also prone to varicose veins because of long standing. I suspect that am developing varicose veins. other than wearing support stockings, exercise, increase water intake, leg raising as preventive measures,are there medical measures that will not prevent me from working as a nurse? please advice. am scared that one day, they will tell me to stop from working because my varicose is getting worse.thank you for taking your time in reading my concern.

GOD BLESS!

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Specializes in 5 yrs OR, ASU Pre-Op 2 yr. ER.

My stockings (thigh high ones) are working well for this problem.

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can anyone here please tell me what are the best medical measures for varicose veins before it gets worse. I will be working in NICU soon and it requires a lot of standing. anybody out here who underwent medical treatment for varicose?

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Specializes in NICU, Telephone Triage.
can anyone here please tell me what are the best medical measures for varicose veins before it gets worse. I will be working in NICU soon and it requires a lot of standing. anybody out here who underwent medical treatment for varicose?

I had my veins stripped. It worked great. They will do a doppler study to check the blood flow and then reccomend stripping or not. Mine were huge and bulging. It took about 2 weeks to fully recover afterwards. The saline injections do not work for big veins. I had a vascular doctor look at them. I did this after my 2 kids, thought I was done having babies, but had #3 and had more veins come back in other locations on legs...just beware that pregnancy and hormones causes them, too.

You can wear TED hose that you have to get fitted for by a doctor and medical supply places order them. They are heavy duty stockings and cost about $100.00. They work, they're just time consuming to put on and take off.

Good luck. ;)

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thank you for that information. is the procedure expensive? i am scared that it will really get worse once i get pregnant. but arent you in pain when its cold? because my friend's mother underwent vein stripping (that was mentioned to me 8 years ago) and her mother regrets for undergoing the procedure because its more painful when the weather is cold.

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Specializes in NICU, Telephone Triage.
thank you for that information. is the procedure expensive? i am scared that it will really get worse once i get pregnant. but arent you in pain when its cold? because my friend's mother underwent vein stripping (that was mentioned to me 8 years ago) and her mother regrets for undergoing the procedure because its more painful when the weather is cold.

My insurance covered it. I don't have problems with the cold weather. Just with standing a long time.

I couldn't live with those veins, so I'm glad I did it.

See a vascular surgeon. Good luck.

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thank you for your advice, i appreciate it so much. :lol2:

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Specializes in med/surg, telemetry, IV therapy, mgmt.

I started having problems with varicosities almost from the beginning of my nursing career. I ended up having phlebectomies in my right leg which compromised the circulation in that leg even more. Now that leg gets edematous all the time. What I wish I had known was that I should have been wearing compression hose from the beginning--not TEDs but Jobst stockings. You'd probably need to see a general surgeon because they're the ones who end up doing the surgeries for this and they can also manage them medically. What happens is you can develop problems with stasis ulcers and difficult healing wounds as the result of the smallest scratches or bumps (I know 'cause I've had a few) that will land you on bed rest with you leg elevated for a couple of weeks while they heal. My boo-boos were managed by a general surgeon. Now, when ever I get a scratch I get compression wrappings on it immediately to keep any edema down so the poor thing has a chance to heal. It doesn't help that I have 3 cats that crawl all over my lap when I'm sitting down. Oh, and by the way, a varicose vein can rupture and start bleeding. Mine did.

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hi! u scare me.:chair:.what is the difference between jobst and TED? Isnt it vascular surgeon is better than general surgeon?

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Specializes in med/surg, telemetry, IV therapy, mgmt.
hi! u scare me.:chair:.what is the difference between jobst and TED? Isnt it vascular surgeon is better than general surgeon?

I thought I would need to see a vascular surgeon too, but was told no, this is handled by general surgeons. Jobst stockings are custom made and exert more pressure against the leg than TED hose. They are the same company that make the compression coverings for people after burns. The measuring is very easy. I just had to go to a place that did the measuring in the morning when the edema in my legs is down. I get my stockings in the mail from Jobst about a week later. The last pair cost $175. I've had both knee high and thigh high ones made. Serious large varicose veins are nothing to put off doing something about. I was told by the surgeon who treated my ulcers that vein stripping is not recommended anymore because it results in even poorer circulation in the legs as I can attest to. The surgeon treated my boo-boos with unna wrapping and I had to be off of work for weeks. My operative leg is discolored and has scarring on it from the stasis ulcers that are now healed. Whenever I am going to be up and around for a length of time the Jobst stockings go on. Otherwise, I spend a good deal of time with my legs level with my heart or elevated above it.

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Specializes in M/S/Tele, Home Health, Gen ICU.

I have had varicose veins since being a teenager, it runs in my family. I wear support panty hose when I wear panty hose and TED hose thigh high when I work. I have more problems with the left leg than the right and had the left leg stripped at age 23 with good effect until 2 years ago when I needed some very painful veins removed I was also having continuous painful swelling. The scars are not pretty as I found out I have an allergy to polysorb but I have no swelling, I do have new varicose vien on that leg but they are rarely painful. I have had 2 children and also lost 40 # and the varicose veins on my right leg have changed very little in the past 20 years, never hurt and have not required surgery. There is no medical reason for my left leg to be worse than the right, it just is. I have been a nurse for nearly 23 years and they haven't stopped me yet.

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Ok now I am nervous. I have had vericose veins since as long as I can remember, probably middle school is when I became painfully aware of it. Kids kept asking me what happened. My legs swell horribly now even when I am cooking dinner. I have not started clinicals yet, so I have not had to stand for long periods of time yet. Would my primary be the one to do the doppler testing or would I have to go a specialist? I would like to have whatever needs to be done if anything before school starts. How long was the wait for the "stripping" if that needs to be done? AHHHH one more thing to worry about.

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