Prospective Study
Copyright ©The Author(s) 2024. Published by Baishideng Publishing Group Inc. All rights reserved.
World J Clin Cases. Jan 26, 2024; 12(3): 517-524
Published online Jan 26, 2024. doi: 10.12998/wjcc.v12.i3.517
Benefit in physical function and quality of life to nonsurgical treatment of varicose veins: Pilot study
Gwon-Min Kim, BoKun Kim, Minwoo Jang, Jong-Hwan Park, Miju Bae, Chung Won Lee, Jong Won Kim, Up Huh
Gwon-Min Kim, Medical Research Institute, Pusan National University School of Medicine, Yangsan 50612, South Korea
BoKun Kim, Future Convergence Research Institute, Changwon National University, Changwon 51140, South Korea
Minwoo Jang, Department of Convergence Medical Science, School of Medicine, Pusan National University, Yangsan 50612, South Korea
Minwoo Jang, Jong-Hwan Park, Health Convergence Medicine Laboratory, Biomedical Research Institute, Pusan National University Hospital, Busan 49241, South Korea
Miju Bae, Chung Won Lee, Jong Won Kim, Up Huh, Department of Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery, Pusan National University School of Medicine, Biomedical Research Institute, Pusan National University Hospital, Busan 49241, South Korea
Author contributions: Kim GM performed the majority of experiments and wrote the manuscript; Huh U designed the study and corrected the manuscript; Kim B is involved in analytical tools; Jang M participated to the collection of the human material; Park JH, Bae M, Lee CW, Kim JW served as scientific advisor and participate to the collection of human material.
Supported by Biomedical Research Institute, Pusan National University Hospital, 202200420001.
Institutional review board statement: This study was reviewed and approved by the Ethics Committee of the Pusan National University Hospital, approval No. 2203-034-112.
Clinical trial registration statement: This study is registered at [https://www.umin.ac.jp/]. The registration identification number is [UMIN000053178].
Informed consent statement: All patients gave informed consent.
Conflict-of-interest statement: No benefits in any form have been received or will be received from a commercial party related directly or indirectly to the subject of this article.
Data sharing statement: Technical appendix, statistical code, and dataset available from the corresponding author at tymfoo82@gmail.com.
CONSORT 2010 statement: The authors have read the CONSORT 2010 statement, and the manuscript was prepared and revised according to the CONSORT 2010 statement.
Open-Access: This article is an open-access article that was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution NonCommercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: https://creativecommons.org/Licenses/by-nc/4.0/
Corresponding author: Up Huh, MD, PhD, Assistant Professor, Surgeon, Department of Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery, Pusan National University School of Medicine, Biomedical Research Institute, Pusan National University Hospital, 179 Gudeok-Ro, Seo-Gu, Busan 49241, South Korea. tymfoo82@gmail.com
Received: September 17, 2023
Peer-review started: September 17, 2023
First decision: December 18, 2023
Revised: December 21, 2023
Accepted: January 3, 2024
Article in press: January 3, 2024
Published online: January 26, 2024
Processing time: 123 Days and 0.1 Hours
ARTICLE HIGHLIGHTS
Research background

Varicose vein has a negative impact on both quality of life (QOL) and physical function, resulting in reduced lower extremity strength and mobility. Impaired circulation leads to reduced muscle oxygenation, which contributes to these effects. However, it is unclear how nonsurgical treatments affect muscle oxygenation and physical function.

Research motivation

Few studies have looked at changes in physical function, quality of life and muscle oxygenation following non-surgical management of varicose vein disease.

Research objectives

Assess the effect of non-surgical treatment on the physical function and quality of life of patients with varicose veins. Additionally, evaluate alterations in muscle oxygenation during activity.

Research methods

A total of 37 participants were enrolled in the study, including 17 with varicose veins and 20 healthy adults. Physical function, QOL, and muscle oxygenation were assessed before and after treatment initiation in the varicose vein group (Healthy adult group only pre-measured).

Research results

Physical function, pain index, and quality of life improved in patients with varicose veins before and after non-surgical treatment. However, no significant change in muscle oxygenation was observed.

Research conclusions

Non-surgical treatments can return patients with varicose veins to a level of function and quality of life comparable to healthy adults.

Research perspectives

Future studies should observe changes in physical function and muscle oxygen saturation in patients with varicose veins requiring surgery to extend the conclusions of this study.