Could Treating Your Varicose Veins Cure Your RLS?
Varicose veins and restless leg syndrome (RLS) often go hand-in-hand. For people who experience both conditions, treating varicose veins can be the key to RLS relief.
Restless leg syndrome — often called “RLS” — is a common condition that gives people the strong urge to move, kick, and twist their legs, especially while attempting to fall asleep. RLS can lead to stress, insomnia, and a lot of discomfort.
Fortunately, varicose vein treatment can relieve RLS in some patients. Recent research suggests that many cases of RLS — especially in middle-aged and older adults — are caused by venous insufficiency, which is the root cause of varicose veins. With the right vein treatment, RLS could be on its way out of your life.
How can varicose veins cause RLS?
There is no single factor that causes RLS. From stress to pregnancy to various neurological conditions, a variety of causes are known to correspond with RLS. Additionally, many RLS cases do not have an identifiable cause at all. Doctors often find it difficult or impossible to pinpoint the cause of RLS, which can make it even more frustrating.
To understand how varicose veins can cause RLS, it’s important to note that there are two types of RLS — primary and secondary. Primary RLS is most people’s classic idea of RLS, in which there is no identifiable cause for uncontrollable leg movements. People with primary RLS simply feel a powerful urge to move their legs, and the movement is not caused by any specific pain, itch, or notable medical factor.
Secondary RLS occurs when an identifiable medical condition urges you to move your legs. People with varicose veins often experience secondary RLS due to the discomfort caused by vein swelling. Some common symptoms of varicose veins include itching, tingling, aching, and a dense or heavy feeling in your limbs — symptoms which might all cause you to move your legs compulsively.
In addition to varicose veins, other venous conditions like chronic venous insufficiency can lead to RLS. Because these venous conditions might be small and difficult to recognize — and perhaps invisible beneath the surface of your skin — it is important to visit a vein specialist to understand how your venous function may be contributing to restless legs.
Treating varicose veins for RLS relief
If you’re looking for relief from RLS, and you suspect it may be related to venous insufficiency, seek out an evaluation from a board certified vein specialist. If you do not have any visible bulging veins, you may still have venous insufficiency. A venous duplex ultrasound done at a vein specialist’s office will help identify underlying vein problems and the treatment of vein conditions.
Vein treatments at Center for Vein
Fortunately, medicine has come a long way in recent years, and there are plenty of ways to eliminate varicose veins and venous insufficiency quickly with minimally invasive techniques in an office setting. To get rid of varicose veins, one of our venous specialists at Center for Vein can perform a variety of procedures that shrink problem veins and redirect blood flow away from swollen areas.
Common ways to treat varicose veins include sclerotherapy (injecting a medicine that shrinks your problem veins), micro-phlebectomy (removing veins with minor surgery), radiofrequency ablation (RFA), and endovenous laser ablation (EVLA).
Our vein experts at Center for Vein offer all of the most common varicose vein procedures and more, in a friendly environment. To remove varicose veins with minimal discomfort, request a consultation today at Center for Vein. The cure for your RLS could be right around the corner.