Ultrasound has really revolutionised the way that doctors treat varicose veins and related conditions. We do not use just an ordinary ultrasound machine — the machine that you might be familiar with diagnosing gallstones or looking at pregnant mothers and their babies — this is a special sort of ultrasound called duplex.
Now what do I mean by “duplex”? Well the ultrasound builds up a picture of the structures the blood vessels the veins so that we can see it on the screen but then it also superimposes the flow of blood and the direction so that we can tell where there are problems with veins. Whether there are blockages whether there are problems with the valves and whether there is flow in the wrong direction so-called “reflux”. So it is very important that we use a duplex ultrasound to diagnose vein problems.
Modern state-of-the-art ultrasound machines are portable. It wasn’t long ago when these ultrasound machines were in hospitals on wheels and were moved around in elevator’s and lifts. But now we have these portable ultrasound machines that look very much like a laptop and they do everything that we need to look at veins and blood vessels.
In the video below I show you the principles of duplex ultrasound on my arm.
Contact me today for a confidential chat
If you’re worried about your veins and would like a confidential chat please do get in touch. I am happy to offer simple advice by telephone or email for free and without obligation.
The VeinCare Centre also offers a screening assessment with our vascular technologist. For £25 you can have a scan with Wendy Parsons. She is not a doctor and so she could not give you medical advice but she can check your deep veins and your varicose veins and give you an idea of how bad they are and what treatment options might be available. If you would like to have an appointment with Wendy please call 0800 698 3467.