You must have often seen that some people have large, worm-like, bulging blue veins on one side of their abdomen or both sides. Whether these cluster-like raised blue veins are on the abdomen or on any part of the body, do not consider them normal but take them seriously; otherwise, you may have to suffer the consequences due to negligence. These raised blue veins appearing on the skin in an abnormal manner indicate various diseases developing inside the body. Therefore, take the protruding blue veins on any part of the body seriously and immediately consult a vascular and cardiovascular surgeon.
Why do these raised veins appear on your body?Â
These raised blue veins are a network of veins located on the superficial surface of the body, which under normal circumstances do not bulge much on the skin and are connected to the system of large deep veins located inside the body. The network of veins on the superficial surface collects impure blood from the outer surface and sends it to the system of large veins located deep inside the body, from where all the impure blood is collected and reaches the lungs for purification via the heart. If, due to some reason, there is a blockage in the deep veins inside the body, they are unable to accept the blood coming from the outer surface, resulting in the impure blood remaining stagnant on the inner surface of the skin instead of going to the deep veins inside. When stagnant blood on the surface of the skin increases in amount, blue veins start appearing in large quantities by bulging above the skin.
Chronic blood clots cause blue veins on your abdomenÂ
If there is a sudden accumulation of blood clots in the deep veins located inside the abdomen, such as iliac veins and the inferior vena cava (IVC), and due to irregular or no treatment in the initial days, these blood clots settle permanently in the deep venous system, then the pathway provided by this deep venous system for the impure blood to rise upwards becomes blocked.
Pressure on deep veins by a tumour—another reason for bulging veinsÂ
Another important reason for the flow of impure blood to stop from these veins is external pressure on them, such as the pressure exerted by the uterus during pregnancy, tumours of the uterus or urinary bladder, or tumours of other large intestines. These can also block the path carrying impure blood to the heart. As a result, the blood coming from the lower legs cannot reach the lungs through these deep veins and tries to reach upwards through the veins located under the skin of the abdomen. This is a temporary and natural process in the body, similar to when a highway is blocked, and people try to take their cars and vehicles from the footpaths and fields on both sides of the highway. Therefore, the blue veins visible in the abdomen indicate that the deep system of veins used to move the impure blood upwards has been blocked. In such a condition, contact a vascular or cardiovascular surgeon without wasting time.
What to do if there are prominent blue veins on your abdomen?Â
If you are seeing spider-like or scissor-like blue veins on your abdomen, do not sit idle; immediately consult a vascular surgeon instead of a general surgeon. It is important to know the reasons for these protuberant blue veins, only then can the right treatment be possible. For this, Doppler studies, multi-CT scans, MR venograms, and digital subtraction venography are needed. Therefore, always go to a hospital where all these modern tests are easily available, and before entering the hospital, ensure that there is the availability of any vascular or cardiovascular surgeon and whether operations of arteries and veins, such as vein bypass surgery, valvuloplasty, etc., are performed or not. Also, ensure there are facilities for venous angioplasty and stenting.
Methods for treatment of bulging veins on the abdomenÂ
The reasons for the occurrence of these blue bulging veins on the abdomen must be identified. If a tumour inside the abdomen is the cause, it must be removed to relieve external pressure exerted on the deep veins. If there is chronic blockage due to blood clots in the deep veins inside the abdomen, venous angioplasty and stenting are considered. If this non-surgical treatment fails, then venous bypass surgery must be performed. If the main deep vein in the stomach is permanently blocked, then special surgical techniques like IVC bypass can be attempted.
Dr K. K. Pandey is Senior Vascular and Cardiothoracic Surgeon, Indraprastha Apollo Hospital, New Delhi
Dr K. K. Pandey
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