[Varicose vein treatment is underreported in Sweden].

The aim of this study was to estimate the number of treatments for varicose veins (VV) performed in Sweden annually and the proportion of these unknown to the National Board of Health and Welfare or to the Swedish National Registry for Vascular Surgery, Swedvasc. Aggregated data was collected from the National Patient Registry (NPR), Swedvasc and inquiries sent to hospitals and private clinics for the years 2016-2018, the calculated volumes from these three sources were comparable with extrapolated volumes obtained from a coverage control between NPR and Swedvasc for treatments of the great saphenous vein. The approximated volumes of VV interventions annually were 8 650, 10 750 and 12 250, the proportion not registered in NPR 29%, 51% and 58% respectively, the corresponding figures for Swedvasc 56%, 33% and 20%. Interventions for VV are thus underreported in Sweden and this has implications for allocation of resources and quality control.