For painful and unattractive varicose veins, Thomas Jefferson University Hospital vascular surgeons now perform the Closure® procedure, a minimally invasive treatment.  

Unlike open surgery to remove the vein (a.k.a. vein stripping), the Closure® procedure takes only about 45 minutes to complete and allows most patients to leave Jefferson’s outpatient surgery center within two to three hours after completion. Better still, it spares patients much postoperative pain and enables them to recuperate and resume work and normal activities faster.

Varicose veins are often caused in part by problems with valves in the saphenous vein, which runs from the ankle to the groin vein. The Closure® procedure utilizes radiofrequency energy to close the saphenous vein. This eliminates the backward flow of blood known as venous reflux that causes veins to expand, along with leg swelling and discomfort. Vascular surgeons deliver the crucial radio frequency energy into the vein via a slender catheter inserted through a single, small puncture near the knee and position it near the groin, then withdraw it slowly.

Jefferson Vascular Surgeons have performed over 300 successful Closure® procedures since the advantages of this treatment were reported in the May 2002 issue of the Journal of Vascular Surgery. Most of their patients have resumed normal activities within a day or two, having avoided the two-to-four weeks of convalescence and the significant amount of bruising, bleeding and postoperative pain associated with vein stripping.

Please call 1-800-JEFF-NOW to schedule an appointment.