Five Star Vein and Wellness Blog

The word “LASER” immediately brings to mind high tech, modern, space age concepts. The public saw this in action in Star Wars in the form of the light saber. The general feeling is that since the laser is a modern technology, the results of treatment with this device are naturally superior; and indeed, this is often true. However, it is not always the case.

Most people are aware that the heart is a muscular organ that acts as a pump, pushing the blood around to all the tissues, supplying nutrients and oxygen so that we can function. But how many are aware that we have another pump that helps blood circulate? It is called the muscle pump and it plays an important role returning blood back to the heart.

In Part 2 of our series on Atherosclerosis, we discussed how plaque and subsequent blockage actually forms in our arteries. Some of this process is unavoidable and is present in essentially all adult Americans. One goal of today's discussion is to consider why diabetic individuals have more severe hardening of the arteries. The second goal is to discuss how all people, both diabetics and non-diabetics, can minimize and, in some cases, reverse these blockages, thereby saving the organs at risk.

In Part 1 of our series on atherosclerosis, we defined atherosclerosis and how it acts to become the world’s greatest health hazard. We talked about plaque build up and make up.

Atherosclerosis, aka arteriosclerosis or “hardening of the arteries”, causes more health problems and death than any other disease entity in our modern world. The odds are that anyone reading this article will be afflicted by the ravages of this problem; they may even die because of it.

Last time, in Part 2 of our three part series, we promised to talk about treatment for and Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm (AAA) greater than 5 cm in diameter. As you recall, this dilation is a weak area (aneurysm) on the blood vessel whose risk of rupture goes progressively higher with increasing diameter. Since the risk of rupture of an AAA of 5cm or greater averages 10%/year or higher and the open repair of AAA has a 5-6% mortality rate, it makes sense to repair AAAs greater than 5cm in diameter.

Last time, in Part 1, we discussed Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm (AAA)—what it is and why it is a serious condition, being the 13th leading cause of death in this country. The question is what to do if you have the risk factors we discussed. How does one diagnose a problem that has no symptoms and is silent until it is too late?

In medical terms, AAA does not refer to highly rated bonds or an Automobile Association. Most physicians recognize that “AAA” means Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm; a silent killer that is the 13th leading cause of death in this country.

Last time we discussed the cosmetic treatment of unsightly leg veins. Today we will talk about treatment of unwanted veins on the face, alternatively called facial veins. Surprisingly, these veins are easier to treat than those found on the legs.

Many people are concerned about the appearance of the tiny red veins that appear on the legs and face. These are called telangiectasias or spider veins [1mm or less].