Abstract

Dodd and Cockett defined varicose veins, saying “a varicose vein is one which has permanently lost its valvular efficiency.” [1] Varicose veins constitute a progressive disease, remission of the disease does not occur, except after pregnancy and delivery. [2] The first documented reference of varicose veins was found as illustrations on Ebers Papyrus dated 1550 B.C. in Athens. [3]Greek philosopher Hippocrates (460-377 B.C.) described the use of compressive bandages and was advisor of small punctures in varicose veins. First patient who underwent operation for his varicose vein appears to be Canus Marius, the Roman tyrant. Giovanni Rima (1777-1843) introduced mid thigh ligation of the saphenous vein. Ligation of the sapheno-femoral junction as it is practiced today was first described by John Homans in his paper in 1916. [2] The Mayo Brothers, postulating that there would be additional benefit in removing the saphenous vein, pursued excision of the GSV through an incision extending from the groin to below the knee. The final technologic leap was introduction of the intraluminal stripper by Babcock. [2] In the era of minimally invasive surgery, the first documented case of Endovenous Laser Ablasion was published in 1999 using 810 nm Diode Laser. Since then several wavelengths were introduced; 810, 940, 980, 1064, 1320, 1470 and newly introduced 1940 nm. [4, 5] It is generally agreed that varicose veins affect from 40 to 60% of women and 15 to 30% men. [6] During the 1930s to 1960s, several large studies reported the prevalence of varicose veins to roughly average 2% in the general population. [7] However, more recently, large population studies such as Edinburgh Vein Study demonstrated an age-adjusted prevalence of truncal varices of 40% in men and 32% in women. [8] Vein ablation is the most modern treatment option for superficial venous disease. Several endovenous modalities are getting popular for the treatment of varicose vein. Endovenous laser ablation therapy is the first endovenous procedure that had made the revolution in the treatment of varicose vein. [9] In Bangladesh, Laser ablation was first started at another center with 980 nm bare fiber and a good number of cases were done. We introduced ELVeSᴿ Radialᴿ fiber for the first time in the country using biolitecᴿ LEONARDOᴿ Mini 1470 nm during last week of March, 2018.

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