These are an inherited condition and come out in pregnancy. Sometimes resolve after the first baby but often much worse after the second and mostly don't resolve and symptoms get worse.

Perhaps having a consultation with a board certified surgeon who specializes in these treatments might help you make the decision. That said, if you do not treat them, I highly recommend a 20-30 mmHg thigh compression hose with possibly increasing to 30-40 mmHg in the late second trimester. This will not "cure" the problem but may slow down the process for you and keep you more comfortable.

Published on Jul 11, 2012

Pregnancy can worsen vein disease. If the timing is acceptable, it is reasonable to start and complete treatment before getting pregnant. Discuss with your doctor as to how much time it would take to initiate and complete treatment (may be 1-2 months) and decide if you can put off pregnancy until then. After pregnancy, you may develop some new veins, but typically, the procedure will be at least partially protective against that.

Published on Jul 11, 2012

Treating after pregnancy is best.

Published on Jul 11, 2012

When possible, I would advise to take care of those varicose veins (and the source of the problem) before your next pregnancy. In the majority of cases, it could be done through a relatively simple procedure under local anesthesia (office setting). That would save you the potential for significant worsening of your symptoms during your pregnancy and for complications such as superficial thrombophlebitis (blood clots in those varicose veins). If we were dealing with spider veins only (i.e. no lumpy ropy veins), I would wait until after the last pregnancy.

Published on Jul 11, 2012