ABSTRACT
Although varicose veins are easily recognizable, there are a number of different definitions. Arnoldi1 defined varicose veins as any dilated, elongated or tortuous vein, irrespective of size. The World Health Organisation (WHO) classification defines varicose veins as a ‘saccular dilatation of the veins which are often tortuous’.2 The 1978 Basle Study, an epidemiological study on 4529 healthy employees of pharmaceutical companies, separated varicose veins into trunk varicosities (dilated tortuous trunks of the long or small saphenous vein and/or their tributaries), reticular veins (dilated tortuous subcutaneous veins, not belonging to the main trunk or tributaries) and hyphenwebs (intradermal vein ectasias).3 The CEAP classification (see Box 6.1, p. 46) was an attempt to classify chronic venous disease, based on clinical, etiologic, anatomic, and pathophysiologic data.4,5 Whilst it may have a number of flaws, it is nevertheless a useful comparative guide for venous interventions and outcomes.
