Venostasis, or venous stasis, is a condition of slow
blood
Blood is a body fluid in the circulatory system of humans and other vertebrates that delivers necessary substances such as nutrients and oxygen to the cells, and transports metabolic waste products away from those same cells. Blood in the cir ...
flow in the
vein
Veins are blood vessels in humans and most other animals that carry blood towards the heart. Most veins carry deoxygenated blood from the tissues back to the heart; exceptions are the pulmonary and umbilical veins, both of which carry oxygenated ...
s, usually of the legs.
Presentation
Complications
Potential complications of venous stasis are:
*
Venous ulcer
Venous ulcer is defined by the American Venous Forum as "a full-thickness defect of skin, most frequently in the ankle region, that fails to heal spontaneously and is sustained by chronic venous disease, based on venous duplex ultrasound testing." ...
s
*
Blood clot
A thrombus (plural thrombi), colloquially called a blood clot, is the final product of the blood coagulation step in hemostasis. There are two components to a thrombus: aggregated platelets and red blood cells that form a plug, and a mesh of cr ...
formation in veins (
venous thrombosis
Venous thrombosis is blockage of a vein caused by a thrombus (blood clot). A common form of venous thrombosis is deep vein thrombosis (DVT), when a blood clot forms in the deep veins. If a thrombus breaks off (embolizes) and flows to the lungs t ...
), that can occur in the deep veins of the legs (
deep vein thrombosis
Deep vein thrombosis (DVT) is a type of venous thrombosis involving the formation of a blood clot in a deep vein, most commonly in the legs or pelvis. A minority of DVTs occur in the arms. Symptoms can include pain, swelling, redness, and enla ...
, DVT) or in the superficial veins
Causes
Causes of venous stasis include:
* Obesity
* Pregnancy
* Previous damage to leg
* Blood clot
* Smoking
* Swelling and inflammation of a vein close to the skin
*
Congestive heart failure
Heart failure (HF), also known as congestive heart failure (CHF), is a syndrome, a group of signs and symptoms caused by an impairment of the heart's blood pumping function. Symptoms typically include shortness of breath, excessive fatigue, ...
.
* Long periods of immobility that can be encountered from driving, flying, bed rest/hospitalization, or having an
orthopedic cast
An orthopedic cast, or simply cast, is a shell, frequently made from plaster or fiberglass, that encases a limb (or, in some cases, large portions of the body) to stabilize and hold anatomical structures—most often a broken bone (or bones), in ...
. Recommendations by clinicians to reduce venous stasis and
DVT/PE often encourage increasing walking, calf exercises, and
intermittent pneumatic compression when possible.
Diagnosis
See also
*
Virchow's triad
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Venous Stasis
Diseases of veins, lymphatic vessels and lymph nodes
Vascular surgery
Preventive medicine