Outcomes of Radiofrequency Ablation Therapy of Great Saphenous Veins Insufficiency.

OBJECTIVE

To evaluate the outcomes of radiofrequency ablation (RFA) therapy performed on patients with great saphenous vein insufficiency.

STUDY DESIGN

Descriptive study.

PLACE AND DURATION OF STUDY

Bahcelievler State Hospital, Istanbul, Turkey, between January 2018 and May 2021 Methodology: A total of 709 patients (382 females, 327 males), who were treated with radiofrequency ablation (RFA) in the clinic, were included in the study. The demographic, anthropometric, clinical, laboratory, and radiological data of the patients were obtained retrospectively from the medical records. Pre and post treatment clinical, etiologic, anatomical, pathophysiologic (CEAP) scores, the venous clinical severity score (VCSS), and the visual analog scale (VAS) were evaluated.

RESULTS

The median age of the patients was 48 (19-65) years, and the median follow-up period was 36 (6-53) months. At follow-up, after treatment, 673 (94.9%) of the patients had a CEAP clinical score of C0. Postoperative complications were recorded in 56 (7.9%) patients. Significant improvement was observed in the patients' CEAP, VAS, and VCSS scores at the follow-up (p<0.001).

CONCLUSION

There was a high success rate in achieving short- and long-term venous occlusion in varicose vein treatment with RFA. Characterized by a fast recovery, good perioperative and postoperative outcomes, and a low frequency of side effects, RFA is effective and safe in the treatment of varicose veins.

KEY WORDS

Chronic venous insufficiency, Radiofrequency ablation, Patient-reported outcomes.