[Pressure therapy using elastic stockings]

Elastic stockings raise problems of two types: prescribing for the physician and compliance for the patient. The prescription must contain five pieces of information: the name of the stocking, its compression strength, its size, its height and its length. Compression strength should be noted either in mmHg, corresponding to the type of disease requiring treatment, or directly in terms of the suffix of the stocking. A table listing the majority of elastic stockings available in France and showing their compression strength facilitates prescribing. It is equally important to take the time to convince each patient of the value of this type of compression, to review the technical difficulties associated with the putting on and taking off of the stockings and the possibilities of superimposition. Compliance with prescribed treatment is the key to success.