3D CT Scans Improve Treatment of Varicose Veins in the Lower Extremities

Three-dimensional computed tomography (3D CT) scans provide a more comprehensive view of complex varicose veins (one of the most common diseases worldwide) in the lower extremities, according to a new study. This technique will help surgeons treat varicose veins more effectively.

One hundred patients with varicose veins in their lower extremities underwent 3D CT scans and "images attained were excellent in 76% of patients,” said Jin Wook Chung, M.D., and Whal Lee, M.D., lead authors of the study, from the Seoul National University Hospital (Seoul, Republic of Korea). 3D CT scans also gave clinicians a closer look at the great saphenous vein (the large superficial vein of the leg and thigh) in 99.5% of all lower extremities being examined.

Varicose veins sit deeply inside fat, and 3D CT allows doctors to have an overview of them. With 3D CT, "the patient and surgeon have a more comprehensive way to see the disease. It shows all aspects of the varicose veins that are important to detect before surgery to prevent recurrence,” according to Drs. Chung and Lee. "3D CT makes it easy to understand the disease and make a surgical plan.”

This study was published in the October 2008 issue of the American Journal of Roentgenology (AJR).

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Seoul National University Hospital