These Genetic Risk Loci Associated With Varicose Veins Have Been Identified by Researchers

Varicose veins cause considerable suffering for more than cosmetic reasons. This disorder also poses health risks, sometimes severe ones. What is the most significant risk factor for varicose veins? What genetic risks do scientists associate with the disorder?

Researchers now have more answers than ever. Recent investigations have identified several genetic risk loci that predispose a person to the disorder. Knowing your risk helps you take the appropriate steps to protect your health.

What should you know if you have concerns? Here’s what we know about the genes associated with varicose veins, the most significant risk factors and how you can reduce your chances of severe complications.

What Are Varicose Veins? Symptoms and Causes

Varicose veins refer to veins close to your skin’s surface that twist and become enlarged. As venous walls become damaged over time, they contort, causing uneven blood flow and a protruding appearance.

In most cases, varicose veins are benign, causing no more than cosmetic discomfort. However, in some cases, they can lead to severe complications, including deep vein thrombosis and pulmonary embolisms.¹ These risks increase depending on your typical activities — for example, those who often take long-distance flights must take additional precautions to avoid DVT.

1. Symptoms of Varicose Veins

The symptoms of varicose veins include the following:²

• Bulging, bluish veins, usually in the lower legs but can appear elsewhere
• Itching, burning or discomfort around the veins
• Skin color changes around the veins
• Swelling in the legs
• Aching pain in the legs
• A feeling of heaviness in the lower legs and feet
• Nighttime leg cramps

2. Dangers of Varicose Veins

The two most severe complications of varicose veins are deep vein thrombosis and embolisms. Pulmonary embolisms are the most common, which occur when a blood clot becomes lodged in the lungs. Coronary thrombosis refers to a clot that navigates to the heart, where it can cause cardiac arrest. Venous thromboembolisms can become trapped in the veins and arteries of the legs. They can restrict blood and oxygen flow, leading to tissue damage.

Other complications of varicose veins include the following:³

• Phlebitis: Vein inflammation that may result in hard, tender clots that differ from DVT and often don’t require treatment.
• Bleeding: A knock to the legs can cause a swollen vein to bleed.
• Venous insufficiency: When varicose veins affect circulation, they can fail to carry sufficient waste away from your body’s cells, which build up and cause damage.
• Varicose eczema: Skin that becomes red, scaly and flaky around the veins.
• Lipodermatosclerosis: A more severe skin condition where the skin of the calves grows hard and tight and may turn red or brown.

Genetic Risk and Varicose Veins

Human beings are the only mammals whose blood pressure affects vein health because we are the only ones who consistently stand upright. Additionally, scientists have long associated vein disease with the following risk factors:⁴

• Age: Varicose veins tend to begin in women around age 30 and age 36 in men.
• Gender: Both men and women have certain risks.
• Pregnancy and hormonal changes: These factors may partially explain some gender risk differences.
• Lifestyle: A sedentary lifestyle, obesity and smoking are all negatively associated with varicose veins.

However, a recent study went more in-depth to examine what specific genes predispose individuals to varicose veins.

1. What Genes Are Associated With Varicose Veins?

According to Dr. Mohammad Reza Amini, director of Peripheral Arterial and Venous Disease Services at Loma Linda University, one of the best things you can do to protect your health is to understand your varicose veins and what factors affect them.⁵ What genes are associated with varicose veins?

Researchers recently analyzed data from the VA Million Veteran Program and other large, multi-ancestry biobanks. They included 49,765 individuals with varicose veins compared to 1,334,301 disease-free controls.

Using this sample, investigators used fine mapping via MR-MEGA, a statistical approach that performs a meta-regression to account for similarities in alleles to construct credible sets.⁶ They identified 70 varicose vein risk loci when including a single variable in a 99% credible set. 63 of these 70 loci shared an association with other traits, including increased weight, body mass index and hip circumference.

Researchers then analyzed whether these alleles were associated with specific tissues or bodily processes. They found a significant association between varicose veins and 20 diagnoses, 15 operations, five medications and treatments, 77 circulating proteins and 216 circulating metabolites. When testing was completed, investigators narrowed down 139 loci associated with varicose veins.

2. What Is the Most Significant Risk Factor of Varicose Veins?

This research reveals multiple influences, including those you can control, such as what medication you take, and those you cannot, such as the levels of various proteins and metabolites in your bloodstream. While it may be impossible to pinpoint the exact combination that leads to disease manifestation in a given person, the most significant risk factor for varicose veins that you have some control over is your weight and activity level.

Here’s where advice can get tricky, as you can be healthy even while carrying a few extra pounds.⁷ However, there’s a difference between having sufficient fat reserves and morbid obesity. If losing weight through the traditional methods of cutting calories and increasing physical activity doesn’t work, you should seek medical care. You may have another disorder, such as thyroid disease, complicating your efforts.

Holistic Tips for Living With Varicose Veins

You can’t do anything to change your genetic risk for varicose veins. However, you can address the most significant risk factor for varicose veins by making lifestyle changes. Other shifts can improve your comfort and prevent your condition from worsening.

1. Wear Compression Garments

Compression garments help varicose veins by compensating for some of the extra distance your blood has to travel, thanks to your upright posture. They put additional pressure on your lower legs, helping your body propel blood back to your heart. It’s especially important to wear such socks and hose on long-distance flights if you have varicose veins to decrease your risk of DVT.

2. Avoid Prolonged Standing

A career as a checkout clerk might not be your best bet if you have varicose veins. Anything that involves prolonged standing in a stationary position can increase blood pooling.

However, remaining seated can also cause blood pooling, as many positions keep your feet much lower than your heart. Jobs that require you to walk, such as waiting tables, may suit you better than those that need you to remain still for extended periods.

3. Kick Up Your Feet

When you sit, try to keep your feet closer to your heart level. You can do so by kicking them up using a stool or a reclining chair to provide the necessary elevation.

You might also find it helpful to prop your feet against the wall. Find one without pictures or artwork that might fall on you and scoot your backside as close to the wall as possible, extending your legs upward.

4. Move Your Body

Remaining sedentary can worsen varicose veins. Worse, it increases your risk of DVT, which can have fatal consequences — that’s why they tell you to stand up and move around as often as possible during flights.⁸

Regular exercise improves circulation, which keeps your vein walls healthier and prevents them from future damage. While it won’t get rid of existing varicose veins, adequate movement might prevent existing ones from getting worse.

5. Avoid Salt

Salt pulls water into your blood vessels, increasing pressure. High blood pressure can damage vein and artery walls, making existing varicose veins worse and creating new ones.

6. Try an Anti-Inflammatory Diet

Damage to vein walls can occur due to ongoing systemic inflammation — meaning it affects every system in your body. This swelling causes veins to open larger. According to Dr. Amini, when this venodilation occurs, additional blood swells vessels, worsening symptoms.

While multiple factors can increase or decrease inflammation, altering your diet may make a significant difference. An anti-inflammatory diet entails avoiding the following substances that increase swelling:

• Sugar
• Alcohol
• Bleached, processed flour
• Ultra-processed foods
• Saturated and trans fats
• Known allergens

Additionally, you should consume more of the following:

• Fresh fruits and vegetables
• Nuts and seeds
• Whole grains
• Lean proteins like fish

7. Maintain a Healthy Weight

Remember, obesity and physical inactivity may be the most significant risk factors for varicose veins. Daily movement and an improved diet should allow you to maintain a healthy weight. Work with your doctor, if possible, to design a customized plan to drop excess pounds if necessary. The same approach won’t work for everyone — consider factors such as existing health conditions, food preferences and your knowledge of self when designing your plan.

8. Stop Smoking

Nicotine causes damage to vein walls, which can spur new varicose veins to form. It also weakens blood vessels, making them lose their elasticity, which impairs their ability to pump blood back to the heart.

Medical Treatments for Varicose Veins

What are your options if your varicose veins impair your quality of life significantly enough to warrant intervention? Here are the current medical treatments for this disorder:⁹

• Sclerotherapy: This procedure involves injecting liquid or foam into the vein to seal it shut.
• Radiofrequency ablation: This method uses radiofrequency energy to heat the inside of the vein and close it off.
• Ambulatory phlebectomy: This technique is often combined with ablation and involves surgical removal of small varicose veins surrounding the ablated tissue.
• Vein stripping: Severe varicose veins may warrant outpatient surgery in which your doctor uses anesthesia to put you to sleep. Such intensive procedures involve longer recovery times.

What Genes Are Associated With Varicose Veins

Scientists are closer to discovering the precise causes of varicose veins. They’ve found what genes are associated with varicose veins and the most significant risk factor for the condition.

Understanding that you have a genetic risk for varicose veins lets you take proactive steps to safeguard your health. Monitor your weight and use the other holistic interventions above to manage your condition and prevent it from worsening.

References

1. ¹. Antignani, PIer L., et. al. “From varicose veins to venous thromboembolic events.” PubMed. June, 2023. Retrieved from: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/36744423/
2. ². “Varicose veins.” PubMed. September, 2023. Retrieved from: https://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health/varicose-veins
3. ³. Smith, Yolanda. “Varicose vein complications.” News-Medical Life Sciences. Nd. Retrieved from: https://www.news-medical.net/health/Varicose-Vein-Complications.aspx
4. ⁴. “The genetic link: Is vein disease hereditary?” Texas Vein and Wellness Institute. Nd. Retrieved from: https://txvwi.com/the-genetic-link-is-vein-disease-hereditary/
5. ⁵. Aubry, Lisa. “How to ease your varicose vein symptom flare-ups in summer heat.” Loma Linda University. July, 2022. Retrieved from: https://news.llu.edu/health-wellness/how-ease-your-varicose-vein-symptom-flare-ups-summer-heat
6. ⁶. Levin, Michael G., et. al. “Multi-ancestry genome-wide association study of varicose veins reveals polygenic architecture, genetic overlap with venic and arterial disease, and novel therapeutic opportunities.” MedRXIV. February, 2022. Retrieved from: https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2022.02.22.22271350v1.full
7. ⁷. Graham, Judith. “Millions of people enter later life carrying an extra 10 to 15 pounds. Should they lose the weight?” CNN. July, 2023. Retrieved from: https://www.cnn.com/2023/07/14/health/older-adults-excess-weight-kff-partner-wellness/index.html
8. ⁸. “In-flight fitness.” National Blood Clot Alliance. June, 2023. Retrieved from: https://www.stoptheclot.org/in-flight-fitness/
9. ⁹. “Varicose veins.” NIH. Nd. Retrieved from: https://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health/varicose-veins