New Orleans Vein Specialist: What to Ask Your Vein Doctor

Posted by oliverstriky on October 10th, 2016

During your first visit to our vein clinic in New Orleans, Dr. Randall S. Juleff will ask you a number of questions to help him assess your venous health. For example, he will ask you about any symptoms you may be experiencing, and about your own health history, but he will also ask questions about your family's health history, because vein disease is hereditary. If your parents had varicose veins, you are much more likely to get them yourself. Dr. Juleff will also perform a number of diagnostic tests, and then he will present his findings to you. At that point, there are a number of questions that you will want to ask him.

"So what's the verdict…are my symptoms due to vein disease, or not?"

This is the first question you should ask. After all, learning the answer to it is why you scheduled a visit with a vein doctor in the first place. If you have noticed overt symptoms such as visible varicose veins or spider veins, the answer is likely to be "Yes." But if your symptoms were more subtle, such as weakness and swelling in your legs and ankles, there could be many possible causes for them. This is your opportunity to find out for sure.

"If I don't have vein disease, can you help me prevent it?"

Even if your Covington vein treatment specialist finds that you don't have vein disease currently, he may find that you have risk factors that mean you have a high likelihood of developing it in the future. Some of these risk factors – your age, your gender, and whether vein disease runs in your family – you can't do anything about. But other factors – such as your weight, how much exercise you get, whether you smoke, and how many hours you spend sitting every day – are within your control. This is your opportunity to discuss with your doctor ways that you can lower these risks, and thus reduce your overall vein disease risk.

"If I do have vein disease, what are my treatment options?"

This is an important question to ask, because depending on your condition, there may be many different treatment options. If you have varicose veins, for example, the options range from conservative treatment (the use of compression stockings, exercise, and lifestyle changes) to more aggressive types of treatment that can eliminate your swollen veins permanently. If you have a more serious form of vein disease such as deep vein thrombosis (DVT), your doctor will explain techniques that can be used to eliminate these dangerous blood clots.

Whatever the treatment options he presents, don't be afraid to ask follow-up questions such as "How long will this type of treatment take?" or "Will it produce permanent effects or just provide temporary relief?" or "Will I feel pain, either during the procedure or afterwards?" or "How long will it be until I see results?"

"What will happen if I decide to avoid or delay treatment?"

From our point of view, this is one of the most important questions you should ask, because as experienced Louisiana vein doctors we know that many patients listen patiently to the various treatment options presented to them, but then walk out and decide not to pursue any of them. You may consider doing the same thing. This is your decision, of course, but you should know what the consequences of such a decision may be. Varicose veins, for example, don't magically go away or "get better on their own" without treatment – they get worse, and sometimes much worse. If you have a more serious condition like DVT, the decision to not treat it can potentially result in a stroke or pulmonary embolism, and be fatal. So you should understand not only what happens if you go ahead with recommended forms of treatment, but what happens if you decide not to.

Whatever your questions, we're here to answer them for you

Our New Orleans vein specialist values education. We welcome your questions, whatever they may be, because our goal is to help you make the best decisions and become as healthy as possible.

About the Author:

The writer is an expert in the field of Best Vein Doctor in Louisiana with focus on New Orleans Vein Treatment and Vein Clinic In New Orleans.