Arteriovenous fistulas result in a rise of pressure in the venous circulatory system, which many authors consider to be the cause of concomitant varicose veins. 22, 28 Analogously, arteriovenous anastomoses, occurring physiologically7 or as congenital malformationsls are discussed to play a role in the development of varicosis. In 1948 Pratt described the &dquo;syndrome of arterial varices&dquo; as a sequel to open arteriovenous anastomoses and this observation has been repeatedly confirmed.19Arterial pulsation of varicose veins and arterial haemorrhage during varicose surgery have been described by Servelle26, Haeger and Bergman~°, Piulachs and Vidal-Barraquerls. Gius8 thought he discovered arteriovenous anastomoses by operation microscope during varicose surgery. Since the histological picture corresponded with that of thick walled veins he conceded that these vessels may have been communicating or perforating veins.Shorter circulation time, higher oxygen saturation in the blood of varicose veins23, 24, 25, raised skin temperature in comparison to that of the healthy legl° and accelerated transition of contrast medium in angiography have been given as further evidence of pathologically opened arteriovenous anastomoses in varicosis3°, 11.In our own examination we were not able to find any differences concerning the occurrence of arteriovenous anastomoses between healthy persons and patients with primary varicosis. The following is a short report of these studies:. MATERIAL AND METHODThe shunt volume was measured on 19 legs with primary varicose veins and on 26 healthy legs by the following method: (a detailed description has been given in a previous paper15.) Albumin particles (&dquo;MAA&dquo;) tagged with radioactive J131 with a diameter of 5 to 50 ~, (on average 25 p.) are injected slowly with repeated aspiration of blood into the femoral artery. The arrival of particles in the foot is registered with one probe, a second probe over the right upper part of the thorax registers impulses from the particles reaching the lungs. Normally these particles become fixed in the small vessels of the lower limb. If there are communicating vessels of larger calibre between artery and vein, those particles whose diameter is smaller than the shunt lumen flow into the veins and become fixed in the small vessels of the lungs. After an intravenous gauge injection of MAA the increase of radioactivity over a certain part of the lungs is detected. Then e. g. the same amount of MAA is injected into the femoral artery. Those particles which are not fixed in the capillaries

No abstract

No abstract

No abstract

No abstract