Safety in compression therapy treatment
Compression therapy has long been considered the gold standard for treatment of venous disease. For those with chronic venous insufficiency (CVI), the leg veins don’t allow blood to flow back up to the heart. This is because the valves don’t work as well and that makes the blood flow backwards, which then causes blood to collect in the legs.
As we age, our risk of co-morbidities increases as do the contraindications (i.e, when not to use compression therapy). Those who have severe CVI are not recommended to use compression therapy, but those who experience mild-to-moderate CVI can benefit from the right compression therapy? By right, we mean safe.
So, what kind of risks are we talking about? The possible risks or those who are at risk for using compression therapy to treat CVI are those who may have diabetes mellitus type 2 and/or Peripheral Arterial Disease.
Those who have diabetes mellitus type 2 have too much sugar in their blood, and too much sugar in the blood stream can cause circulation issues. Using the wrong compression therapy product that has too high of working pressure can create pressure peaks in the foot area that can be hard for a diabetes patient to feel or experience.
PAD, or Peripheral Arterial Disease, is a common circulatory problem in which narrowed arteries reduce blood flow to the limbs, most often due to a buildup of plaque.
This restricted blood flow, especially in the legs, can cause soft tissue atrophy, which in the worst case scenario can lead to open wounds.
Those patients with chronic venous disease and mild-to-moderate PAD can be safely treated with compression stockings, so long as the right compression stocking is used. Luckily, here at medi®, we have a sock that fits the safety requirements for diabetes and mild-to-moderate PAD patients: the mediven® angio.
medi conducted a clinical study1 with 94 patients that addressed the question of how wearing medical compression stockings influences the microcirculation in patients with venous edema and coexisting PAD and/or diabetes mellitus type 2 and its safety. These participants wore the mediven angio in compression classes 15-20 and 20-30 mmHg. The concluding results were that:
- The use of the medi medical compression stocking mediven angio is safe and feasible with compression classes 15-20 & 20-30 mmHg.
- The microcirculation is stable under both compression classes and is comparable to the values found in healthy patients.
- No adverse events such as skin breakdown, lesions or irritations occurred during the study.
- Patient wearing comfort was good to very good.
The mediven angio has several features that make it not only a safe option, but the comfortable option:
- Broad top band that keeps sock securely in place.
- Solid ribbed structure that provides the ideal ratio between resting and working pressure.
- An extra-long flat toe seam that reduces pressure points on the toes and feet.
- Merino plush in the entire foot gives a unique padding throughout the foot and ankle to reduce pressure on bony prominences.
To find out more about the mediven angio, a sock specifically developed for patients with mild-to-moderate diabetes and PAD:
