Thermography and phlebography in the detection of incompetent perforating veins.

In 22 patients with deep venous insufficiency thermography performed at rest and immediately after exercise was compared with conventional ascending phlebography. Thermography was found to have a high sensitivity in detecting incompetent perforating veins, while the specificity was low. The non-invasive thermography is an attractive technique for preoperative detection of perforating veins.