What is chronic venous insufficiency? Everything to know about Trump's diagnosis
Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt shared a letter from Trump's physician in a news conference, which said Trump was examined after he noticed "mild" swelling in his legs.
Leavitt said the physician described the condition as "benign" and "common," particularly among adults above age 70.
MORE: Gal Gadot reveals she had 'massive blood clot' in brain while pregnant
Leavitt added that the president is in "excellent health" and that the doctor's full letter would be released soon.
Here's what you need to know about the condition, what symptoms it causes and how it's treated.
What is chronic venous insufficiency?
Chronic venous insufficiency (CVI) is a circulatory condition in which the veins in the leg have difficulty returning blood back to the heart due to damaged valves.
"Unlike the arteries, the veins have valves that help return blood to the heart," Dr. Andrea Obi, vascular surgeon at University of Michigan Health Frankel Cardiovascular Center and associate professor of vascular surgery at University of Michigan Medical School, told ABC News.
She explained that there are larger veins, called deep veins, which return the bulk of blood to the heart, and there are superficial veins, which are just under the skin surface.
"When the valves fail, meaning they don't adequately return blood to the heart, the blood can back up into the leg, and that's essentially what venous insufficiency is," Obi said.
This can cause blood to pool in the legs and lead to leg swelling.
MORE: Tori Kelly hospitalized: What you need to know about blood clots
CVI is fairly common, affecting up to 40% of the U.S. population, according to the Society for Vascular Surgery.
Obi said this figure may be an underestimation because CVI is not detected on any routine screening test, and patients often require a duplex ultrasound -- a non-invasive imaging technique to assess blood flow and blood vessel structure -- for diagnosis.
What are the symptoms?
Obi said most CVI patients have mild symptoms and the most common manifestation is varicose veins, which occur when the blood pools into the superficial veins just under the skin.
The veins become swollen, which can be heavy, uncomfortable or painful for patients.
If patients have CVI in the deeper veins, they may experience leg swelling around the ankle area and it can extend up towards the knee, Obi said.
In more severe cases, darkening of the skin can occur and an open sore or ulcer could develop.
"When the blood pools down near the ankle level, you'll get discoloration, and it's a brown discoloration … and that brown discoloration is the result of the iron from the red blood cells that sort of pools there and gets picked up by your immune cells," Obi said.
Over time, this can make the skin thick and unable to heal from minor trauma, which is when ulcers form, she said.
How is it treated?
Treatments are typically nonsurgical and are mainly to prevent swelling and ulcers from forming, according to the Society for Vascular Surgery.
Obi said if a patient is found to have CVI incidentally and they don't have symptoms, there is no need for treatment unless symptoms arise.
First-line treatment can include compression, such as wearing compression stockings or an elastic wrap. There are also supplements patients can take to relieve symptoms, Obi said.
MORE: Singer Tori Kelly being treated for multiple blood clots after collapsing
"Compression is the very first thing that you prescribe and then, generally, if a patient desires surgical intervention or something like that, you would try compression first to see if they get relief," she said. "If they're still symptomatic or not able to live their daily life, then you might proceed down the pathway of doing an intervention to try and help them improve their quality of life."
If superficial veins are affected, patients may receive vein ablation, which is a minimally invasive procedure to close the veins off, and removal of the varicose veins.
If deep veins are affected, some patients may require an angioplasty to widen the narrow or blocked veins, or stenting to restore blood flow.
Obi said even if someone's vein valves are prone to failing due to genetics or aging, walking can help overcome this.
"Your calf muscle will substitute for your valves, and your calf muscle will actually push the blood back up to your heart," she said. "We tell all our patients, 'You should do some sort of walking program to keep that calf pump strong. The worst thing you can do is stand on your feet for long periods of time and allow the blood to pool."
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
San Francisco Chronicle
an hour ago
- San Francisco Chronicle
Planned Parenthood closes 5 Northern California clinics, citing Trump budget bill
President Donald Trump's budget cuts to Medicaid have forced Planned Parenthood Mar Monte to shutter five clinics across Northern California and the Central Coast, including one in South San Francisco, the group said Thursday. The GOP-led federal spending bill that Trump signed into law earlier this month eliminated federal Medicaid funding for any type of medical care to organizations that perform abortions. Mar Monte is the largest Planned Parenthood affiliate in the country, with health care centers from Bakersfield, the Bay Area, Stockton and Sacramento. The now-shuttered facilities also include San Mateo, Santa Cruz, Gilroy and Madera. The closures represent the first wave of how the recent federal budget cuts will have real-life consequences for health clinics across the country — particularly for low-income Americans. They are also a crushing blow to a state that set it up to be an abortion haven after the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in 2022. In the year after the decision, political leaders in California — led by Gov. Gavin Newsom and the Democratic-controlled Legislature — passed more than a dozen new laws and invested more than $200 million to increase access across the state. Thursday's announcement drives home the extent of the federal government's tremendous power to impact abortion access. Roughly 80% of Mar Monte's patients received Medi-Cal, California's version of Medicaid. Ten million people are expected to lose their health insurance because of nearly $1 trillion in Medicaid cuts over the next decade in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, according to the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office. Meanwhile, the wealthiest Americans will receive a disproportionate share of the tax cuts funded by those cuts, according to the Center for Budget and Policy Priorities. In just one week since Mar Monte stopped billing Medicaid, the Planned Parenthood affiliate with 35 locations said it saw 5,000 patients — amounting to about $1.7 million in care costs it covered without reimbursement — Mar Monte Chief of Staff Andrew Adams told the Chronicle Thursday. 'It's just not sustainable,' said Adams. 'We can't keep our doors open if we continue doing that.' Mar Monte said the funding law also forced it to end services in family medicine, behavioral health and prenatal care. The Planned Parenthood affiliate estimates it will lose $100 million in annual revenue from care that can no longer be reimbursed under the law because they provide abortion care. Americans tend to support abortion rights, according to public polling. A May 2025 Gallup Poll found that 51% of respondents described themselves as 'pro choice' while 43% described themselves as 'pro life.'Of those respondents who said they were 'dissatisfied' with the nation's abortion polices, 42% said they would like to see them made 'less strict' while 14% wanted them to be 'stricter.'
New York Times
3 hours ago
- New York Times
Trump Administration Asks Supreme Court to Allow N.I.H. to Cut D.E.I.-Related Grants
The Trump administration on Thursday asked the Supreme Court to allow the National Institutes of Health to cancel millions of dollars in grants linked to diversity initiatives. In the emergency application, lawyers for the Trump administration asked the justices to block a ruling by a federal judge in Boston. In June, Judge William G. Young of the Federal District Court of Massachusetts had declared some of the administration's cuts to the N.I.H. 'void and illegal.' Judge Young, a Reagan appointee with 40 years of experience as a federal judge, had accused the Trump administration of prejudice against L.G.B.T.Q. people and of racial discrimination in targeting hundreds of grants that supported research into topics such as gender identity and equity in health care. The judge said that during his career, he had 'never seen government racial discrimination like this.' In March, the Trump administration began to cut N.I.H. grants that focused on research on health equity, racial disparities, vaccine hesitancy and maternal health in minority communities, sometimes by scanning for certain terms. A coalition of Democratic-led states, researchers and unions, led by the American Public Health Association, had brought legal challenges to stop a raft of cuts at the N.I.H., arguing that they endangered scientific progress. The justices have not called for a response from the groups challenging the Trump administration cuts.
Yahoo
4 hours ago
- Yahoo
Primus Sounds Alarm on Chronic Venous Insufficiency as President Trump's Diagnosis Sparks National Focus
SCOTTSDALE, ARIZONA / / July 24, 2025 / Following reports of President Donald J. Trump's diagnosis with Chronic Venous Insufficiency (CVI), Primus Pharmaceuticals, Inc. strongly calls on healthcare providers to intensify efforts to diagnose and treat this silent epidemic affecting 25-30 million Americans because only less than <10% are actually treated. Leg swelling, heaviness, and varicose veins are often dismissed as cosmetic or "normal aging," while they can signal a dangerous progression toward severe complications including thromboembolism (blood clots), debilitating pain, non-healing leg ulcers, and compromised mobility. Widespread, Under-Recognized Health Threat CVI, also known as chronic venous disease or venous reflux disease, impacts twice (2x) as many Americans as coronary heart disease, three times (3x) peripheral arterial disease, and 30 times (30x) the number of Americans who have a heart attack each year. According to CDC, up to 900,000 Americans are affected by venous thromboembolism annually, and 60,000 to 100,000 people die each year. Millions suffer daily challenges - standing, sitting, flying - due to blood pooling in the legs, worsened by inactivity or pressure. Traditional treatments - leg elevation, compression stockings or surgical procedures - are often cumbersome, uncomfortable, underutilized, and may be expensive with added health risks. Life-Changing Solution: Vasculera® Primus offers Vasculera, the only U.S. prescription product for CVI. It is specifically formulated as a medical food for the clinical dietary management of CVI. Taken once daily, this 600mg tablet delivers highly purified, bioavailable diosmin, a flavonoid sourced from oranges, in combination with a pH buffering agent and: Calms inflammation and oxidative stress Strengthens weakened vein walls Improves overall venous function Counters localized CVI blood acidosis Manufactured in the U.S., Vasculera presents a novel naturally-derived alternative to the status quo. Expert Physician Perspectives "CVI and its manifestation in skin known as stasis dermatitis is a very common condition that can lead to significant impairment and morbidity," said Dr. Mark Nestor, MD, PhD, Board-certified Dermatologist and Voluntary Professor, Department of Dermatology and Cutaneous Surgery, University of Miami, Miller School of Medicine. "Diosmin in its bioavailable form in the pharmaceutical-grade medical food Vasculera is a natural flavonoid that has scientifically proven benefit for this condition." Board-certified Vascular Surgeon Dr. Ron Bush, MD, FACS, one of the world's foremost experts in the histology and treatment of venous disease states, "CVI is a common condition, with symptoms that may vary but are consistently linked to elevated venous pressure. In my clinical experience, Vasculera has proven to be an effective treatment option. Its active ingredient, diosmin, is well-studied and widely documented for its ability to address the inflammation associated with chronic venous hypertension. Vasculera is also well-tolerated and has no significant contraindications." Robust Clinical Backing Over 60 published peer-reviewed clinical studies confirm diosmin's effectiveness in reducing leg pain, swelling, and skin deterioration associated with CVI. Vascular medicine experts recommend Vasculera's ultra-micronized diosmin as the only U.S. product for venous ulcers and CVI symptoms, both as standalone and adjunctive therapy in national treatment guidelines. Public Health Call to Action With an aging population and more time on electronic devices fueling CVI's prevalence, Primus urges clinicians to: Proactively screen all at-risk patients for CVI Integrate proven prescription metabolic therapies like Vasculera with CVI standards of care For prescribing information, visit About Primus Pharmaceuticals Primus innovates in prescription nutritional therapies targeting metabolic causes of chronic diseases across rheumatology, dermatology, and women's health. We develop and commercialize first-in-class products and novel deliveries in Rx drugs, medical foods, and medical devices to fill key unmet needs with universal patient access not provided by traditional pharma. Visit Contact Information Randy Keating Public Relations Managerrkeating@ SOURCE: Primus Pharmaceuticals View the original press release on ACCESS Newswire Sign in to access your portfolio
