Piles and more... dealing with incompetent veins

Abstract

The day that man took his first steps on his two hind legs is considered a milestone in the evolutionary dominance of mankind. Yet this feat has borne with it one huge burden – the human being is just about the only species to suffer from varicose veins and haemorrhoids, the visible effects of venous insufficiency. Chronic venous disease (CVD) has been described as ‘an abnormally functioning venous system caused by venous valvular incompetence with or without associated venous outflow obstruction, which may affect the superficial venous system, the deep venous system, or both’.1 With the minor inclusion of postthrombotic syndrome, the majority of CVD can be attributed to chronic venous insufficiency (CVI) which is the pathophysiological mechanism for both abnormal leg veins and haemorrhoids.