Venous ulcers occur on the inner surface of the leg a few centimeters from the ankle joint. These ulcers are almost always located below the knee and can affect one or both legs. These ulcers are red, and when they have a secondary infection, they produce a yellow or green discharge. Some ulcers may produce a lot of discharge while others don’t. The upper surface of the venous ulcer may have yellow tissues.
The overlying skin changes the colour, and you may get swelling on one leg. When the leg swells, the skin becomes shiny and feels tight. Different people get different severity of the symptoms of venous ulcers but Dr. Autumn Savage has a long, positive track record in treating venous ulcers with varying severity. Some people get pain and itching in addition to leg swelling. If you develop these symptoms or if the ulcer does not heal within two weeks, you should seek medical attention.
What Causes Venous Leg Ulcers?
Venous leg ulcers are the most frequent types of ulcers and occur secondary to trauma in the legs. When the leg gets injured, the pressure inside the veins rises, and they finally burst to damage the overlying skin, forming venous ulcers. Some risk factors increase your probability of getting venous ulcers, including being overweight because the excess weight puts pressure on the veins on the legs.
People who have suffered from deep vein thrombosis in the past are at risk of getting venous ulcers because this condition affects the valves in the legs making the blood get stasis. Physically inactive people suffer from venous ulcers because the calf muscles that help to pump blood back to the heart are weak.
Stasis of blood inside the leg veins can damage the veins making them get ulcers. Any condition that causes your lower limbs such as fractures and prior surgery to the legs increases your risk of getting a venous leg ulcer. Old age causes a lot of chronic diseases like arthritis, and this can also contribute to you developing venous leg ulcers. Venous ulcers also affect people who are suffering from paralysis.
How Can You Prevent Venous Leg Ulcers?
If you fall under the high-risk category, you should take safety measures to prevent the development of venous ulcers. One effective way of preventing venous ulcers is exercise. You should be physically active so that the blood in your legs circulates well in the body. It would help if you managed your weight because excess weight can trigger venous ulcers by putting pressure on the veins in your legs.
Doing regular exercise and eating a healthy diet are some of the ways to reduce your weight. If you are bedridden or you have a disease that makes you inactive, you should elevate your legs to stimulate blood to flow back to the heart. People who have had venous ulcers in the past can reduce the risk of getting another ulcer by wearing compression stockings.
Compression stocks squeeze the legs and stimulate the blood to circulate well. These stockings extend from the ankle to the knee, but they are tighter at the ankle. Another way to improve blood supply is to quit smoking because smoking causes vasoconstriction and will delay the healing of your wounds. The underlying cause of the venous ulcers should be treated so that the ulcers do not recur.
Venous leg ulcers occur when the leg of a susceptible person gets an injury which creates pressure inside the veins that makes the overlying skin form an ulcer. You are at a high risk of developing venous ulcers if you have an underlying medical disease, if you are physically inactive, or overweight. Some of the ways to avoid venous ulcers are to elevate your legs, manage your weight, and to exercise regularly.
