Definition – What is a vein weakness?
Veins are the blood vessels that transport blood from all parts of the body back to the heart. The blood that comes from the legs, for example, must be pumped upwards against gravity towards the heart. In the case of venous insufficiency, this no longer works sufficiently. The blood in the legs accumulates, which can lead to varicose veins or swelling of the legs.
Causes of vein weakness
The most common cause of venous weakness is a loss of function of the venous valves. With every heartbeat, blood is pumped from the legs back up towards the heart. To prevent the blood from flowing back in the direction of the feet, there are the venous valves.
Like a valve, they close after each beat and thus allow the blood to flow in only one direction. For the superficial veins in the legs, this is the only way to prevent the blood from flowing back. If the venous valves no longer close completely, some blood can always flow back and a blood accumulation in the legs occurs.
The veins dilate, the legs swell, and the blood accumulates even in small side branches, causing the veins to curl. The loss of function of the venous valves usually occurs in conjunction with a number of risk factors. These include, for example, weak connective tissue, which often occurs in women, especially after pregnancy or due to family inheritance.
Other risk factors include high body weight and occupational activities, which often involve long periods of standing or sitting. In addition to the loss of function of the venous valves, the cause of venous weakness can also be an obstruction in the flow of blood. This can, for example, be caused by thrombosis, a narrowing of the blood vessels caused by deposits. In this case, too, the blood can no longer be sufficiently transported back to the heart and therefore accumulates in the legs. This is how you can detect a thrombosis at an early stage: Detecting a thrombosis
