Advances in venous surgery: SEPS and phlebectomy for chronic venous insufficiency

Chronic venous insufficiency (CVI) and its complications of chronic pain, intractable ulceration, and infection are important conditions to treat by modern surgical techniques. As early as the 1930s, perforating veins with outward flow were implicated in the pathogenesis of this condition. Recognition that such outward flow promotes leukocyte adhesion and activation as the principal microcirculatory cause for the cutaneous changes has explained the importance of perforating vein interruption? Because of disability of CVI, surgeons and patients reluctantly tolerated the open Linton perforator interruption operation with its morbid knee-to-ankle incisions. It was tolerated because it worked. Modifications to reduce the morbidity of the procedure eliminated two of the three incisions used in the explorations of the 1930s. Other modifications such as DePalma's modification of the incisions further reduced wound complications. However, the most significant surgical alteration was to utilize the endoscopic techniques introduced in Europe by Fischer and Hauer. Very quickly it was obvious that the endoscopic technique minimized postoperative complications. Application of endoscopic perforator interruption to varicose vein surgery validated the safety of the procedure but did not contribute to knowledge about treating CVI.