Are Varicose Veins Hereditary?

Individuals with varicose veins wonder if genetics played a role in their growth or if it dooms them to varicose veins if a parent has them. Is the answer in your genes? Do genetics play a role in varicose veins? Is there anything you can do to help and prevent them?

Genes are like history, and DNA is the language your genes write. But can you change your story?

As defined by the National Human Genome Research Institute, a genome is another name for the wholeness of your DNA. Your DNA determines your specific code and all the information needed to build and develop the unique you.

All individuals have their unique genomes.

Learning about your genome will inform you about your health and help you make healthy choices throughout your life.

Therefore, there are things you can do and good choices you can make to stay healthy. The measures you take also apply to vein health.

Varicose veins happen when the veins become enlarged, fill too much with blood, and begin to twist and curl. The condition is prevalent, especially in women, but men are not immune. Approximately twenty-five percent of all women have varicose veins.

The thickened and dilated parts of the vein are varicosities. Varicose veins may form anywhere on the body but most frequently appear on the legs and feet.

Varicose veins are enlarged, swollen, looped veins that are frequently visible and palpable on the surface skin; they may be blue, purple, or skin-colored.

As a result, these enlarged veins may ruin your plans to get naked next summer. They can also cause cramping, aching, and shooting pain in the legs, worsening over time.

Whether you want them gone because of how they look or how your legs feel, many treatments are available that may eliminate varicose veins and leave behind smooth skin that blends well with shorts and other leg-baring clothing.

VARICOSE VEINS ARE HEREDITARY

Many individuals who suffer from varicose veins may wonder if they are hereditary. Unfortunately, like many genetic disorders, varicose veins are hereditary.

Your chance of getting varicose veins increases if a close relative has the condition, confirming a link between genetics and varicose veins.

If one of your parents suffers from varicose veins, you have a forty percent chance of inheriting them. If both parents suffer from them, your risk increases dramatically to ninety percent.

Having valves that do not work correctly or are too few is also a frequent problem that individuals may inherit.

Sometimes, you may be born with abnormalities in the vein wall. The resulting weakness may predispose the valves, leading to separation and cracking. When someone with malfunctioning valves stands up, blood flow goes in the wrong direction and flows down the superficial veins when it should flow toward the heart.

Then, pressure builds up in the superficial veins and causes varicosities.

SYMPTOMS AND SIGNS OF VARICOSE VEINS

Other than frustration with the appearance of varicose veins, you may not have any signs or symptoms with varicose veins. However, they are frequently an indication of venous insufficiency, which, if left untreated, may develop into chronic venous insufficiency (CVI).

This progression may cause a worsening of symptoms, which may include the following:

• Worsening pain with aching and cramping
• Feeling of heaviness in the legs or feet
• Edema, swelling in the legs, feet, and ankles
• Tingling, itching, and burning in the legs
• Changes in skin color and texture
• Slow-healing skin ulcers

CAUSES WHY VARICOSE VEINS DEVELOP

Varicose veins are prone to run in families, and hereditary factors play a role in the development of varicose veins. Nevertheless, you cannot blame everything on your parents.

Other aspects that can contribute to the development of varicose veins, which impose additional stress and strain on the veins, include the following:

• Overweight
• Changes associated with aging
• Pregnancy
• Lack of physical activity
• Work or other activities that require long periods of standing up

GENDER AND DEVELOPMENT OF VARICOSE VEINS

In a case-control study of one hundred and thirty-four families, researchers found the following results:

• If both parents had varicose veins, the children’s risk of developing them was ninety percent.
• If one parent had varicose veins, the children’s risk of developing varicose veins was twenty-five percent for males and sixty-two for females.
• When only one parent had varicose veins, there appeared to be no correlation between the sex o the affected parent and varicose veins in the children.

They concluded that their findings excluded a sex-linked pattern of inheritance.

ETHNICITY AND DEVELOPMENT OF VARICOSE VEINS

In a study of more than two thousand individuals, chronic vein disease at the earliest stage (spider veins) appeared to be more frequent in non-Hispanic whites than in Hispanics, African Americans, and East Asians. However, the study went on to say that these results were probably related to social habits; they did not appear to have a link with genetics.

A study of four ethnic groups in Southern California, using visual examination and ultrasound, showed the following:

• Varicose veins were present in 33% of women
• Varicose veins were present in 17% of men
• There were no ethnic differences.

The study concluded that the presence of varicose veins varied by gender but not by ethnicity.

HORMONES AND THE DEVELOPMENT OF VARICOSE VEINS

Physicians now recognize that women’s hormones may play a role in developing varicose veins. Elevated estrogen and progesterone hormone levels can thin vein walls during pregnancy, making pregnant women more prone to chronic venous insufficiency. Estrogen may also damage the valves within the veins.

Menopause will also affect the health of a woman´s veins but in reverse. During this time, a woman’s hormone levels decrease. This hormone drop makes the vein walls thicker, less flexible, and more constricted.

GETTING RID OF YOUR VARICOSE VEINS

Many efficient and minimally invasive treatments successfully eliminate varicose veins, including surgical options such as vein stripping.

However, when considering undergoing treatment before the condition progresses to an advanced stage, you frequently have the option of non-surgical therapy. This non-surgical therapy means a faster recovery and a quicker return to daily activities.

A thorough evaluation is the only way to decide which treatment is best for you. Depending on those results, your physician may suggest several innovative and minimally invasive treatment options for your varicose veins.

PREVENTING HEREDITARY VARICOSE VEINS

There are some things about varicose veins that are beyond our control (written somewhere in your DNA), but there are things you may do to help prevent them

• Maintain a healthy weight
• Avoid sitting or standing without moving for long periods
• Exercise and walking are great for vein health
• Eat a healthy diet, including complex carbohydrates and protein
• Avoid salty food
• Wear compression stockings or socks
• Drink plenty of water

VARICOSE VEINS IN MODERN HEART AND VASCULAR

At Modern Heart and Vascular Institute, we have years of practice providing the most applicable and recent vein removal procedures and have treated several patients concerned about their veins. In addition, we collaborate with highly qualified vascular specialists with vast experience and education in their field.

We offer some of the least invasive techniques for varicose veins and other vein conditions. And with no long-winded downtime or recovery required. Instead, we focus on the root cause of your veins.

The benefits of non-surgical and least-invasive procedures are the following:

• Extremely effective
• Walk-in treatment
• Ninety-eight success rate
• No general anesthesia
• No downtime or time off work
• May be performed in a clinic (without hospitalization)

We recommend treating your varicose veins as soon as possible. However, if you can point out worrisome changes in the appearance of your veins on the surface of your skin, have a vein specialist check it out immediately. You may book an appointment for varicose vein treatment at any of our Modern Heart and Vascular Institute clinics.

If you want to learn more about varicose veins and how we treat them, contact Modern Heart and Vascular Institute at 832-644-8930.

APPOINTMENTS ARE AVAILABLE AT OUR DIFFERENT LOCATIONS

• The Woodlands, Texas
• Katy, Texas
• Humble, Texas – Imaging Center
• Livingston, Texas
• Humble, Texas
• Cleveland, Texas

It is always best to prevent a problem from developing before it becomes more severe. Additionally, if you have threat factors for varicose veins, such as family background, consider calling us to visit our Modern Heart and Vascular experts. We can offer you additional ideas to maintain your veins thriving while you execute your daily activities.

Varicose veins may cause pain, discomfort, cramping, loss of function, and more severe health problems. If you or somebody you treasure is at risk of presenting varicose veins, we suggest consulting a specialist healthcare provider or your physician.

If you have worries about varicose veins or wish to be evaluated by one of our vascular experts, please get in touch with us.

At Modern Heart and Vascular, we are committed to placing our patients first and providing all the responses to your questions about heart health and heart issues. Therefore, we take most major insurance companies, including Medicare.

We are Modern Heart and Vascular Institute, a diagnostic and preventative medicine cardiology practice. For more information, contact us.