Leg Venous Ulcer Size Inversely Related to Number of Notable Perforating Veins: A Word of Caution

Abstract

Background Perforating vein ligation has been proposed for the treatment of chronic venous ulcers in the leg. Pubmed.org, however, showed a lack of increase in subfascial endoscopic perforator surgery (SEPS) publications, even before the popularization of perforating vein thermal or chemical ablation procedures. We renewed an investigation on perforating vein ligation surgery as part of venous ulcer treatment. The basic question was if ulcer size and number of notable perforating veins were related. Methods Leg perforating veins were detected by ultrasonography (US) and by clinical palpation in 118 legs of 104 subjects, mostly women (79, 76%). This group represented a sample of a mostly rural Brazilian population. Inclusion criterion was any “request for venous US at any stage of ulcer treatment.” Ulcer size in centimeters squared and number of detected perforating veins (NP) were compared using Pearson correlation coefficient p available with Excel. Results Average ulcer size was 13 ± 17 cm2 (1–100) for NP = 0–7, resulting in p = −0.18 for the 118 pairs of data. Subgroup averages were 16, 16, 11, 8, and 8 cm2 for NP = 0, 1, 2, 3, and ≥4 perforating veins detected (n = 32, 30, 29, 16, and 11, respectively), resulting in p = −0.94 for such averages and NP. Conclusion Ulcer size failed to correlate with number of detected perforating veins based on raw data but correlated inversely to such number if subgroup averages were compared. Average ulcer size was larger for subgroups of legs with lesser number of perforating veins. Arbitrary ligation of detectable perforating veins may result in ulcer size augmentation. Detailed research must continue to find criteria to indicate (a) ligation or (b) preservation of specific perforating veins either (a) detrimental or (b) contributory to venous ulcer healing.