Impact of Endovenous Water Vapor Treatment on Quality of Life in Superficial Venous Insufficiency of the Lower Limbs

The prevalence of superficial chronic venous insufficiency (CVI) of the lower limbs is estimated at 18 million French people. The number of patients operated for varicose veins is around 300,000 per year. Post-operative complications such as venous ulcer, venous thrombosis and varicose vein rupture require a lot of medical care. Varicose veins are responsible for a decrease in quality of life and represents 1 to 2% of total health expenditure. Currently, operating techniques tend towards minimally invasive procedures in order to minimize the surgical trauma, improve patient comfort and reduce the time of postoperative work stoppages. This study aims to compare two surgical techniques for the treatment of superficial chronic venous insufficiency of the lower limbs : phlebectomy, the gold-standard technique, and endovenous steam treatment. Several studies have already been carried out on endovenous steam treatment for saphenous veins but none has been published concerning the tributary veins.The main objective of INVOLVE is to assess the quality of life of patients 1 month after surgery. Clinical improvement and economic impact will also be evaluated.