Varicose Veins

All veins contain tiny one-way valves that ensure that blood travels toward the heart to become oxygenated. When these valves fail, blood can pool and the veins can stretch or bulge. These are called varicose veins. Varicose veins often appear through the skin on a person's legs as blue, bulging, and twisted, and can cause tiredness or heaviness in the legs, swollen ankles, and dry skin.

At Boston Medical Center, we offer state-of-the-art, effective treatments that can improve the appearance and symptoms of varicose veins. Our interventional radiologists use a variety of minimally invasive techniques, including vein ablation treatment. This outpatient procedure takes less than an hour and has a high success rate (ranging from 93 to 95 percent) and low recurrence rate, compared to surgery. With vein ablation, you have no scars, because the procedure only requires a small nick in the skin. Vein ablation also allows you to return to normal activity almost immediately.

We also perform other, less invasive treatments for varicose veins, such as endovenous laser treatment, or EVLT, a nonsurgical approach that uses a targeted laser to seal the vein shut, often eliminating symptoms.

To read more about varicose veins, click here.

For more information about endovenous laser treatment (EVLT), click here.

For an article about vein ablation, click here.