Not all ulcers happen in the stomach lining. Meet venous ulcer AKA venous stasis ulcer, a sore that shows up on the lower legs when the veins aren’t working well. Basically, the veins can’t push blood back up to the heart as they normally should, so blood collects in the legs. This excess blood at the lower leg puts pressure on that area which can lead to an open wound or ulcer.
The idea of having blood collected at the lower leg might sound strange to some people. But it happens a lot, especially in older people; a good number of older people deal with leg ulcers which makes it hard for them to move around. In this article, we’re going to look at the symptoms and causes of venous ulcers
Symptoms of Venous Ulcers
- Aching or pain in the legs
- Swelling around the ulcer
- Itchy or tight skin
- Open sore with uneven edges (usually around the ankles)
- Discolored skin around the ulcer (brown or red)
Causes of Venous Ulcer
The main reason venous ulcers happen is as a result of CVI, which is short for chronic venous insufficiency. Typically, the veins have little valves that allow blood to move in one direction, upward towards the heart.
But when these valves get weak or damaged, the blood starts flowing the wrong way, downwards, and gets stuck in your lower leg. Over time, this extra blood puts a lot of pressure on the veins, which causes the skin to break and form a sore or ulcer.
The second cause is varicose veins. Varicose veins are those swollen, twisted, and damaged veins that you probably might have seen on some people’s leg or even your leg.
The blood that gets trapped in the veins adds more pressure, making the skin more likely to break. Thus, you can say that varicose veins are a warning sign that you might get a venous ulcer, if it’s not taken care of.
Risk Factors For Venous Ulcer
There are certain things called risk factors that make it more likely for a person to develop a venous ulcer.
Age: As you get older, it is only normal for the body to get weaker. When the veins get weaker, the walls of the veins and the tiny valves inside them begin to break down, which makes it harder for the veins to push blood back to the heart.
Obesity: Are you familiar with the TLC show called My 600-lb Life? It’s basically a show where obese people who weigh over 600 lbs try to lose weight. If you’ve seen an episode of the show, you may have probably noticed that they usually have sores on their legs, or they’d be battling with swollen legs.
Basically, carrying extra weight puts more pressure on the veins. The veins have to work harder to pump blood and over time, all this extra pressure can lead to skin breaking and forming sores.
Sedentary lifestyle: You’ve probably noticed that if you sit or stand for long periods of time without moving much, your blood begins to flow slowly down. That’s because your leg muscles aren’t working to help push blood back up to the heart. So the blood starts pulling in your leg. The longer you stay still, the more pressure builds up in your veins, which makes venous ulcer more likely.
Bottom Line
Venous ulcer is one of the many types of ulcer that doesn’t affect the stomach lining, rather, it affects the lower leg. The idea of having blood collected at the lower leg might sound strange to some people. But it happens a lot, especially in older people. It’s usually caused by chronic venous insufficiency and varicose veins. This makes the skin around the broken skin get discolored, the area becomes itchy, and the open sore has uneven edges.
