The vascular laboratory

Letter to the Vascular Medicine readership

“…This section, which is edited by Drs Natalie Evans and Elizabeth Ratchford, has been a popular addition to our Journal, in print and online. Covering common and uncommon diagnoses, as well as procedures and therapeutic treatments in a vascular practice, [2][3][4][5] these articles are among the most downloaded each month from our Journal, and I have heard first-hand from vascular colleagues that these articles are routinely downloaded, printed, and given to patients. These documents have become a useful tool in my own vascular practice.…”

Vascular Disease Patient Information Page: Venous reflux testing

“…A venous reflux study is a noninvasive ultrasound examination. 2 This test is performed in a vascular lab by a sonographer (also called a vascular ultrasound technologist). The test usually takes between 1 and 2 hours, depending on whether one or both legs are examined.…”

Superficial vein thrombosis

“…In the past, SVT was most commonly diagnosed clinically – that is, with a physician’s physical examination in combination with suspicion for the condition. Now, it is usually diagnosed with ultrasound, which is a non-invasive test that uses sound waves to look at the blood vessels (see Vascular Disease Patient Information Page: The vascular laboratory 2 ). Sometimes called duplex or Doppler, this test creates pictures of the affected veins using a hand-held ultrasound probe (Figure 3).…”