The Henry Ford Vein Center

Veins return blood to your heart from throughout your body. Our vascular surgeons and vascular medicine specialists offer compassionate care for all types of conditions affecting these key blood vessels. Some common vein conditions we diagnose and treat include:

• Chronic venous insufficiency
• Deep vein thrombosis
• Pelvic congestion syndrome, chronic pelvic pain caused by pooled blood in pelvis veins
• Spider veins
• Superficial thrombophlebitis, a blood clot in a vein near the skin’s surface, which causes inflammation
• Varicose veins
• Venous ulcers, open skin sores caused by poor blood flow in leg veins

Blockages caused by vein compression

Venous compression syndromes develop when nearby structures squeeze major veins, potentially reducing blood flow or causing a blood clot. Our vein specialists have extensive experience in diagnosing and treating these complex disorders, which include:

• Klippel-Trenaunay-Weber syndrome, a congenital (present since birth) disorder that causes red birthmarks and abnormal development of certain veins, tissues and bones
• May-Thurner syndrome, compression of the iliac vein that returns blood from the left leg to the heart
• Nutcracker syndrome, compression of the left kidney vein
• Paget-Schroetter syndrome, a type of thoracic outlet syndrome, with compression of veins in the armpit or shoulder

When you come to Henry Ford with symptoms of a possible vein condition, our specialists conduct a comprehensive evaluation. Once we reach a diagnosis, we work with you to develop a personalized treatment plan.

Our team has the skills and resources to offer every treatment for vein disease. From medications and lifestyle changes to minimally invasive procedures and surgery, our vascular experts help find the right plan for you.

Making small changes and embracing healthy habits can improve your symptoms and slow the progress of vein disease. Our vascular specialists have years of experience helping people develop realistic goals to:

• Eat a nutritious, healthy diet to help lose weight and prevent swelling from water retention
• Stay physically active to help lose weight and maintain good blood circulation in the legs
• Maintain a healthy weight

To improve the way you feel, you can also take steps on your own:

• Wear compression stockings to relieve swelling and help move blood up to the heart
• Change your position about every hour to avoid sitting or standing in one position for too long
• Raise your legs above your heart three to four times per day for 15 minutes each time
• Avoid tight clothes, especially on the waist and lower body
• Wear low-heeled shoes to help tone your calf muscles and improve blood flow to the heart
• Practice good skin hygiene, take care of any wounds and moisturize dry, cracked skin on your legs

Our vascular medicine specialists treat many vein conditions by prescribing medications and monitoring your health at regular intervals. You may need one or more approaches:

• Antibiotics: These medications help heal skin infections or ulcers (open sores).
• Anticoagulants (blood-thinning medications): If you are at risk for blood clots, these medications help prevent them. Heparin, warfarin (Coumadin®) and Xa inhibitors are common blood thinners.
• Observation with imaging: Our vascular medicine specialists may monitor you with imaging, such as duplex ultrasound. We work to detect any changes in your vein health.

Some vein conditions, such as varicose veins and chronic venous insufficiency, respond well to noninvasive therapies. These therapies include:

• Sclerotherapy: Your vascular medicine specialist or cosmetic surgeon injects a liquid or foam chemical solution into the affected veins, which cause them to collapse and gradually fade. Sclerotherapy is an outpatient procedure that you can have in our offices and return to work afterward.
• Surface laser therapy: Your specialist applies a handheld laser to the surface of your skin above the affected vein. The laser’s bursts of light break down the wall of the affected vein, which gradually fades. We typically use this outpatient procedure to treat less severe vein issues.

If you have a condition that’s causing more serious symptoms, our specialists offer the latest minimally invasive treatments. Many of these treatments take an endovascular approach, meaning doctors work inside the veins to fix the problem. They only need to make small incisions to do so.

Your care team has extensive expertise with these approaches, developed from helping thousands of people. We use safe, effective treatments, with faster healing, less pain during recovery and little or no downtime. Most people can go home the same day, or the next.

The minimally invasive treatments offered by our vascular surgeons and interventional radiologists include:

Catheter-directed thrombolysis

For clots, our vascular surgeon or interventional radiologist performs an endovascular procedure to access the affected vein. Your doctor inserts a catheter (thin, flexible tube) into the vein and guides it to the clot. Through the catheter, the doctor can remove the clot with tools.

Endoscopic vein surgery

This endovascular procedure treats veins that have more severe, ulcer-causing disease. The doctor uses a catheter with a camera and tiny instruments to surgically close the vein. Endovascular vein surgery is an outpatient procedure.

Endovenous thermal ablation

In an outpatient, endovascular procedure, your doctor uses a catheter with a tip that heats up with energy from a laser or radio waves. As the doctor slowly pulls the catheter out of the vein, the heat seals the vein shut.

Inferior vena cava filter placement

In this endovascular procedure, our interventional radiology team places a filter in the inferior vena cava. The IVC is the main vein bringing blood back to the heart from the lower body. During the procedure, your doctor inserts the collapsed filter through the catheter and guides it into the IVC.

The filter then expands and attaches to the walls of the IVC, catching any blood clots that could travel to the heart or lungs. IVC filter placement is a treatment option for people at risk for blood clots who can’t take blood thinners.

Inferior vena cava filter removal

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration recommends removing IVC filters when the risk of blood clots has passed. If you have an IVC filter, our specialists can remove it using an endovascular procedure.

Interventional thrombectomy

We use advanced endovascular devices along with thrombolysis to dissolve and remove blood clots from veins. Your doctor guides the devices through the vein to the clot and administers clot-dissolving medications.

One device uses ultrasound, and the other a vibrating wire, to help break up the clot. The doctor uses the catheter to draw out the medications and remains of the clot.

Stab phlebectomy

Also known as ambulatory phlebectomy, this procedure removes smaller, diseased veins through several tiny incisions. You can return to your daily activities right after this outpatient procedure.

Venous angioplasty and stenting

For severe cases of chronic venous insufficiency in deeper veins, your vascular surgeon may perform an endovascular procedure to open blockages. The surgeon inserts a catheter with a balloon tip, then inflates the balloon to widen the vein. In some cases, we may place a stent (tiny, metal-mesh tube) in the vein to hold it open.

In rare cases, you may need an open surgery called vein bypass. Your surgeon transplants a healthy vein from elsewhere in your body, attaching it above and below the diseased section of vein. Vein bypass surgery reroutes blood around the diseased part of the vein for improved blood flow.

Although vein treatment is highly effective, some conditions can recur (come back) or cause later complications. You’ll see our vascular medicine specialists, who provide ongoing care to manage your health and prevent problems. We check your blood flow on a set schedule, using ultrasound.