SPECIAL ARTICLE   

Acta Phlebologica 2023 April;24(1):25-34

DOI: 10.23736/S1593-232X.22.00556-2

Copyright © 2022 EDIZIONI MINERVA MEDICA

language: English

3D and Smart Foam, new avenues to explore, to improve the safety and effectiveness of ultrasound guided foam sclerotherapy

Mario SICA ¹ ✉, Alain MONFREUX ²

¹ Ecole Internationale de Sclérothérapie (EIS), Vincennes, France; ² Private practitioner, Toulouse, France

Ultrasound-guided foam sclerotherapy is the least invasive care method for the treatment of varicose veins of the lower limbs. It is the treatment that patients choose when they know it exists. This prospective analysis aimed to show that it would be possible to perform a safer and more efficient ultrasound-guided foam sclerotherapy with the development of some significant advancements. The use of a tomographic imaging device for easy access to 3D imaging brings considerable progress to ultrasound-guided foam sclerotherapy thanks to the reconstruction of the venous axis to be treated in its entirety and in volume. Significant is also the concept of introducing flexibility in the choice of sclerosing liquid/air ratios, Smart Foam, to complete the 1:4 ratio which has never been subject of any study.

KEY WORDS: Venous insufficiency; Varicose veins; Sclerotherapy; Imaging, three-dimensional