A comparison of health-related quality of life of patients with primary and recurrent varicose veins

Aim: To determine whether recurrent varicose veins affect patient quality of life. The health-related quality of life (HRQL) scores of patients with recurrent varicose veins were compared with those of patients presenting with primary varicose vein disease. Methods: HRQL among patients attending outpatient appointments for recurrent and primary varicose veins was measured using the Aberdeen Varicose Vein Questionnaire (AVVQ) and the Short Form-36 General Health Survey (SF-36). Results: Questionnaires were given to 211 patients (150 primary, 61 recurrent), and 194 (133 primary, 61 recurrent) completed them. For the AVVQ, patients with recurrent varicose veins had significantly worse symptom scores compared with those with primary disease (24.87 +/- 12.28 vs 17.77 +/- 9.68, Mann-Whitney, P<0.01). The SF-36 recorded significantly worse HRQL (Mann-Whitney, P<.05) for patients with recurrent varicose veins compared with those with primary varicose veins in all but one of the eight domains (role limitation attributed to emotional problems, RE, P=0.073). Conclusion: Varicose vein recurrence is associated with a significantly worse HRQL than is found among patients with primary varicose veins. 2003 Royal Society of Medicine Press.