Chennai (PTI): Varicose veins can now be treated with little or no pain through a technologically-advanced procedure called Radio Frequency Ablation (RFA), a medical expert said on wednesday.

Unlike surgical and laser ablation, the RFA was a minimally invasive outpatient procedure that could often be completed within an hour. It mostly required only local anaesthesia with little or no operative trauma, said Dr Shiraz Kareem, consultant cardiovascular physician, Heart, Artery and Vein Centre (HAVe) here.

He said varicose veins (swollen veins) develop when the valves that usually keep blood flowing through legs become damaged or infected.

Since valves could not be repaired, the only alternative was to re-route blood flow through healthy veins. This has been done, traditionally, by surgically removing the troublesome varicose vein from the affected leg, he added.

Explaining the RFA procedure, the cost of which starts from Rs 25,000 per limb, Kareem said it involved closing of the affected vein. The treatment was done by inserting a thin catheter into the vein through a small opening, under 'ultrasound guidance'.

The special catheter delivers radiofrequency energy with electrodes at the tip. The electrodes touch the vein walls and deliver energy directly into the tissues without coagulating blood, causing it to heat, collapse and close. Once the diseased vein was closed, other healthy veins would take over the flow of blood from legs, he said.

The RFA, which provides minimal to no scar, also minimises the recurrence of varicosity, he said.