Member Article

Leading surgeon warns of lack of vein awareness

A leading South West surgeon has warned that a lack of awareness when it comes to conditions of the veins, means that thousands of people in the region are going undiagnosed and untreated, leading to risks of deterioration and complications.

Professor Mark Whiteley, a world-leading surgeon in the treatment of venous conditions and owner of a renowned specialist clinic in Clifton, says that a significant number of sufferers in the South West are using support stockings or are being given steroid creams or antibiotics, when in fact, duplex ultrasound scanning and then anticoagulation, local anaesthetic surgery or foam injections are often required.

Conditions such as varicose veins, leg ulcers, pelvic congestion syndrome and phlebitis can all be treated effectively now; some will develop into much more serious afflictions and result in severe complications if not treated.

Mark, who is an internationally published author on the topic of veins, said: “Venous conditions are not often discussed as a serious health risk. Many people believe varicose veins are a purely cosmetic complaint, when in actuality they can become extremely uncomfortable for the sufferer and can develop into something much more serious.

“At The Whiteley Clinic, we hear time and time again of patients with varicose veins who have never thought of visiting the doctor or, if they have, have been sent away on several occasions without referral for investigation and proper treatment.

“For over a decade we have been trying to increase awareness about venous disorders in both the public and medical profession so that patients can get the right advice. Most venous disorders can be treated nowadays in the outpatient clinic setting. However if left, venous conditions usually deteriorate making the eventual treatment harder to do and causing the patient to have an increase of their symptoms, a risk of complications and a decreased quality of life.”

He continued: “The guidelines state very clearly that these patients should be referred to a service that has a team of doctors and health care professionals working together, who are able to perform venous duplex ultrasound and any of the new endovenous techniques. A doctor doing their own scans does not comply with these NICE guidelines.

“The Whiteley Clinic fits the recommended guidelines precisely as we have specialist vascular technologists who do nothing but veins duplex scans, and doctors who specialise in the latest local anaesthetic walk-in walk-out endovenous techniques. All of our team follow The Whiteley Protocol which is research based to make sure that our patient get the best treatment tailored to their individual needs.

“We’ve started running free consultation events so that people can pop along and be assessed by one of our specialist consultants, hopefully reducing the number of people who are falling through the cracks.”

The Whiteley Clinic is based at the Litfield House Medical Centre in Clifton and provides vein expertise to patients from across the South West.

Run by Bristol-born vein expert Professor Mark Whiteley, the clinic is one of four in the UK, with other clinics in London, Guildford and Birmingham.

Professor Whiteley was the first consultant surgeon to introduce minimally invasive varicose vein surgery techniques in the United Kingdom, performing the first case in March 1999.

The next Whiteley Clinic open day will take place on Saturday 9 July.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Clarke Willmott .