Symptoms

The symptoms experienced with vein diseases depend on two major factors. First, the degree of venous reflux influences how severe and how constant the symptoms will be. Second, long-standing disease will usually produce the more severe range of symptoms since these disorders are usually progressive.

Here is a list of the more commonly encountered symptoms experienced with venous insufficiency ...

• Legs ache and feel tired
• Legs burn or itch
• Legs feel "restless" with a need to keep them moving
• Legs swell or feel "heavy"

With pure spider veins symptoms are usually milder or not present at all. If symptoms arise, these include…

• Tenderness directly over the spider vein
• Itching or burning at or around the spider veins
• Heat or dull ache in the area of the spider veins

If superficial venous thrombophlebitis (SVT), or blood clots, have developed, symptoms usually present suddenly and include…

• Moderate to severe pain
• Swelling and redness over the clotted veins
• Clotted area hot to the touch
• Hard "cord" or "lump" can be felt over the vein