The Medical Evolution of Chronic Venous Insufficiency

Chronic Venous Insufficiency (CVI) can now be better identified than it had been previously by using advanced in-office vascular testing systems. These systems are easy to use and their collaborative care platforms offer increased accuracy. Full patient data is compiled, processed, analyzed and stored in order to deliver a thorough patient history that is utilized for more reliable diagnoses and continuous care.

These diagnostic systems, along with increased patient awareness and use of CVI testing procedures by physicians, allow CVI to be recognized earlier than ever. This makes proper management and treatment of the condition easier. Common treatment plans may include instructing patients to:

Avoid long periods of standing or sitting
Exercise on a regular basis
Lose weight
Elevate their feet[1]
As CVI can lead to serious infections of the lower extremities, it is important to check all at-risk patients for possible symptoms. Symptoms may include:

Aching
Heaviness
Leg-tiredness
Cramps[2]
CVI has been a known medical ailment for thousands of years. Until recently, ascending phlebography, the recording of the venous pulse, has been the method of choice to demonstrate patency of the veins[3]. The ancient Greek physician, Hippocrates, used a primitive bandaging method to manage this condition that affects the venous walls of the leg veins. By 1676, stockings were used to control humors, the normal functioning bodily semifluid or fluid, impacted in the leg[4]. Although both of these treatment techniques are still used to this day, there are now more effective means of detecting and treating CVI.

With modern medical technology, CVI can be better detected using non-invasive, easy-to-perform procedures.