Health

Comprehensive Varicose Vein Treatment in Bakersfield, CA

Published

1 year ago

January 7, 2022

A significant percentage of people in the US experience varicose veins. The condition often caused reduced self-esteem and discomfort. If not treated, varicose veins can cause severe medical issues. The board-certified cardiologist Vinod Kumar MD, FACC, at Heart Vascular and Leg Center provides comprehensive treatment for varicose veins in Bakersfield. Dr. Kumar and his team offer a wide range of varicose vein solutions to relieve your symptoms and prevent complications. Call or book an appointment online to get started today!

What Exactly Are Varicose Veins?

Varicose veins refer to the enlarged, visible and twisted veins that commonly happen in your legs. Varicose veins occur due to malfunctioning valves. This makes them unable to function appropriately or push the blood from the legs back to the heart to get replenished with oxygen. This results in blood pooling in your legs, leading to debilitating pain, non-healing wounds, and amputation. The team at Heart Vascular and Leg Center provides several effective varicose vein treatment options.

What Are the Common Varicose Veins Symptoms?

Varicose veins can cause numerous signs and symptoms. these include;

Muscle cramping
Itchy veins
Cold-like veins
Twisted or bulging veins
Visible dark blue or purple veins
Skin discoloration
Leg pain after sitting or standing for long
Burning, throbbing, or swelling

Spider veins are smaller than varicose veins and are found on your face and legs. The possible complications linked to varicose veins include blood clots and painful ulcers.

What Are the Possible Risk Factors for Varicose Veins?

Anyone can get varicose veins, including men and women. However, numerous factors increase the risk of developing varicose veins. These include; being overweight, having a family or personal history of varicose veins, old age, lack of enough exercise, and sitting or standing for a longer time. Women are also more likely to get varicose veins than men.

What Are the Treatments for Varicose Veins?

When you schedule an appointment with Heart Vascular and Leg Center to treat your varicose veins, you will be diagnosed and given individualized treatment plans best for your condition. They have innovative minimally invasive technology that needs no surgery or downtime. The various treatments available include;

Making lifestyle changes

The doctor might recommend making simple lifestyle changes such as exercising regularly, avoiding standing or sitting for long, and maintaining a healthy weight. This will help prevent or reduce varicose veins.

Compression stockings

You might be required to wear compression stockings for weeks or months. The socks help the veins to move blood more conveniently, reducing the severity of varicose veins.

Sclerotherapy

This involves the injection of a unique solution into the varicose veins causing scarring and closing of the veins. These veins fade away in some weeks.

Radiofrequency and laser treatment

As the name implies, it uses radiofrequency energy to damage the varicose veins, fading away.

VenaSeal

Here, the doctor uses a medical adhesive and catheter to seal the varicose veins non-surgically.

Do not live with debilitating or embarrassing varicose veins while there are effective nonsurgical treatments. Book a consultation by phone or online scheduling tool with Heart Vascular and Leg Center today!

Health

How to Help Your Child if You Think They Might Have Autism

Published

18 hours ago

February 3, 2023

Michelle Langton

Do you suspect your child might have autism, but you’re not sure? While only a professional diagnosis can tell you for sure, there are many ways you can support your child while you get a diagnosis and create a plan.

Here are some of the best ways to support a child you think might have autism.

Try a variety of therapies

While you’re in the process of getting a formal diagnosis, start trying different therapies with your child to see if anything resonates with your child. Every child with autism is different, so what works for one person may not work for another. There are several types of therapy you can try that are low-cost or free, including play therapy, speech therapy, floortime, ABA therapy, and more.

Although your child will need a formal Autistic Spectrum Disorder (ASD) diagnosis to get ABA therapy, it’s worth noting that once you have a diagnosis, you can get in-home therapy, which will make things easier on you and your child. Organizations like Golden Care Therapy in New Jersey will send an ABA therapist to your home to work with your child in their own environment. Getting in-home therapy will reduce the stress your child may feel from being in a new and unfamiliar place.

The more therapies you try, the better chance you have of getting a head start in supporting your child, whether or not they get diagnosed with autism.

Get your child some sensory toys

Kids with autism need to stim, which is just a fancy way of saying they need something to stimulate their senses in a way that allows them to mitigate and disburse the sensory overload they’re feeling. Without toys, kids will find ways to stim using just their bodies and their surroundings, but toys can be extremely helpful and less damaging depending on your child.

Every child is different, so it might take a bit to find toys they like. However, you can find some excellent suggestions from The Aspie World on YouTube. Some toys spin, squish, make noise, or are a series of magnets that can be reshaped. If your child is already fixated on certain types of toys, try to find something that matches their existing interest. For example, if they like soft textures, find some plush toys with a velvety-smooth texture. Try all types of toys to see if they help your child.

Seek a professional diagnosis

Getting a professional diagnosis is the best way you can support your child when you think they might have autism. Once you have a diagnosis, that opens the door to getting services that will help them immensely. Not just while they’re young, but it will help them in their adult life, too. For example, if your child moves out on their own, and they struggle with self-care and household chores, they’ll need a professional diagnosis to get in-home services from the state.

A professional diagnosis will tell you if your child is on the autism spectrum, or if they have a different disorder. Depending on the therapist you choose, they’ll likely be able to diagnose your child with any relevant comorbidities, which are common with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD).

Learn about autism

Next to getting your child professionally diagnosed, learning about autism will help you support your child in many ways. There are many misconceptions about autism that can make it hard to spot the signs of autism. One of the best people to learn from is Tony Attwood. He’s considered the leading expert on Autism Spectrum Disorder and is extremely knowledgeable.

One of the most important things you can learn from Attwood is how to spot Autism in girls. For various reasons, it’s harder to spot autism in girls and some girls don’t get diagnosed until they’re in their 40s. Attwood gave an excellent talk about Asperger’s in girls back in 2015, and you’ll learn a lot from this speech.

Although Attwood’s speech focuses on Asperger’s, it is part of the autism spectrum. As a diagnosis, Asperger’s has been officially merged into the diagnosis of Autistic Spectrum Disorder.

Support your child in every way you can

When you suspect your child might have autism, it’s important to support them in every way possible. While you’re seeking a professional diagnosis, start trying simple solutions, like play therapy and toys for stimming. See how they respond. Once you get a diagnosis, your child’s therapist will suggest next steps to help your child long-term.