Important: This page is general information, not medical advice. It does not recommend or prescribe any treatment. Always consult your doctor or pharmacist before starting, stopping or changing any medicine.
About Varicose Veins
Varicose veins are swollen, twisted veins that you can see just under the skin. They usually occur in the legs, but also can form in other parts of the body. Hemorrhoids are a type of varicose vein.
Your veins have one-way valves that help keep blood flowing toward your heart. If the valves are weak or damaged, blood can back up and pool in your veins. This causes the veins to swell, which can lead to varicose veins.
Varicose veins are very common. You are more at risk if you are older, are female, have obesity, don't exercise, or have a family history of varicose veins. They can also be more common in pregnancy.
Doctors often diagnose varicose veins from a physical exam. Sometimes you may need additional tests.
Exercising, losing weight, elevating your legs when resting, and not crossing them when sitting can help keep varicose veins from getting worse. Wearing loose clothing and avoiding long periods of standing can also help. If varicose veins are painful or you don't like the way they look, your doctor may recommend procedures to remove them.
It sits within Blood, Heart and Circulation.
The lead U.S. institute for this subject is the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute.
When to speak to someone. Reading about a topic cannot tell you whether it applies to you. Speak to a doctor or pharmacist if symptoms are severe, sudden, getting worse, or simply not going away — and seek emergency care immediately for chest pain, breathing difficulty, sudden weakness or confusion, or a serious allergic reaction.
Research on Varicose Veins
840 studies areregistered for this condition on ClinicalTrials.gov, the U.S. National Library of Medicine's public registry. A selection is below — the links go straight to the registry entry, not to a summary of ours.
What a registered study does and does not mean. Registration means a study exists and has been declared publicly. It says nothing about whether the treatment being tested works, is safe, or is available to you. Many studies find no benefit — that is what research is for. Never seek out an experimental treatment on the strength of a registry entry alone.
Research currently under way
- Effect of Photobiomodulation on Healing of Venous Leg UlcersUniversity of Nove de Julho
- Randomized Controlled Trial for Treatment of Pain and Assessment of Wound Healing in Chronic Venous Leg Ulcers Using Near Infrared Laser TherapyWake Forest University Health Sciences
- Natural History of Noncirrhotic Portal HypertensionNational Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK)
- A Modified Platform Trial of Multiple CAMPs for the Management of Diabetic Foot Ulcers and Venous Leg UlcersIntegra LifeSciences Corporation
- Percutaneous Electrocoagulation Versus Sclerosing Foam for Patients With Incompetent Perforating VeinsSecond Affiliated Hospital, School of Medicine, Zhejiang University
- Trial of Ovarian Vein and Pelvic Vein Embolization in Women With Chronic Pelvic Pain and Pelvic VaricesWeill Medical College of Cornell University
Research already completed
- Vacuum Compression Therapy for Chronic Lower Limb UlcersBTL Industries Ltd.
- Apixaban vs Rivaroxaban vs No Anticoagulant to Prevent EHIT After Great Saphenous Vein Laser AblationHeart, Artery, and Vein Center of Fresno
- Development of 4D Flow MRI for Risk Stratification of Variceal Bleeding in CirrhosisUniversity of Wisconsin, Madison
- PMCF Study of Debridement PadAdvanced Medical Solutions Ltd.
- Observation of Pain During Radiofrequency Ablation of Saphenous Vein，and Analysis of Related FactorsChengdu University of Traditional Chinese Medicine
Study data from ClinicalTrials.gov, a service of the U.S. National Library of Medicine. Retrieved 2026-07-30. Registry entries are supplied by study sponsors and investigators; ClinicalTrials.gov does not verify their scientific validity. PocketsInfo is not affiliated with, and not endorsed by, the NLM or the NIH.
Where to read more
Rather than paraphrase, we point you to the primary sources. Every link below is to a government health agency, a national institute or a recognised medical body — grouped by what you are trying to find out.
Start Here
- Varicose VeinsNational Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute
- Varicose Veins and Spider VeinsDepartment of Health and Human Services, Office on Women's Health
Diagnosis and Tests
- Venography -- Blood Flow Examination of VeinsRadiological Society of North America
- Venous UltrasoundRadiological Society of North America
Treatments and Therapies
- Ambulatory PhlebectomyAmerican Society for Dermatologic Surgery
- Bulging Veins: What to Do about Varicose VeinsNational Institutes of Health
- Horse ChestnutNational Center for Complementary and Integrative Health
- Sclerotherapy of Varicose Veins and Spider VeinsRadiological Society of North America
- Varicose Vein Treatment (Endovenous Ablation of Varicose Veins)Radiological Society of North America
- Varicose Veins: Diagnosis and TreatmentMayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research
Related Issues
- Chronic Venous InsufficiencyJohns Hopkins Medicine
Clinical Trials
- ClinicalTrials.gov: TelangiectasisNational Institutes of Health
- ClinicalTrials.gov: Varicose VeinsNational Institutes of Health
Medical subject headings
Clinicians and researchers index this subject under Varicose Veins. These are the terms to use when searching medical literature.
This page is built from the MedlinePlus health topic record for Varicose Veins, a service of the U.S. National Library of Medicine (NLM), National Institutes of Health. Information is from MedlinePlus.gov. PocketsInfo is not affiliated with, and is not endorsed by, the NLM or the NIH. Retrieved 30 July 2026.