Most commonly, phleboliths are masses of lime or calcium found in the pelvic area and harmless, although their presence can sometimes be a sign of more serious diseases and conditions. Due to the symptomless nature of phleboliths, their development isn’t known until the patient has an X-ray for another unrelated health problem. This article will describe the symptoms, causes and remedies for a better understanding.
Symptoms of Phleboliths
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Symptoms |
Descriptions |
|---|---|
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Pain |
Pain is usually in the pelvis area, but also in the lower back or abdomen. The pain is very similar to the kind caused by kidney stones. |
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Thrombosis |
Thrombosis can be a sign of phleboliths. Blood flow can slow when this happens, but you may not notice it on your own. |
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Varicose Condition |
Due to the presence of a phlebolith, your pelvic veins can dilate and cause a varicose condition. This will also lead to pain in your pelvis. |
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Kidney/Bladder Discomfort |
Discomfort in the area of your kidney and bladder will also be noticeable. This is an important part of caring for a phlebolith because this will allow the problem to easily be located if you can pinpoint the area of pain/discomfort. |
Causes of Phleboliths
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Causes |
Descriptions |
|---|---|
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Pressure in Veins |
Pressure can build up in the walls of your veins due to urinary phleboliths. Any vein injury caused by vein pressure can cause this problem. |
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Varicose Veins |
Varicose veins, while being a symptom of phleboliths, are also a cause of them. These overstressed, dilated veins can lead to phleboliths in addition clotting. |
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Bowel Movements |
Strained bowel movements can increase blood pressure and create problems that result not only in phleboliths, but other organ problems due to excessive pressure. |
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Liver Disease |
Liver disease will cause many problems in your life. Additionally, though, it will lead to phleboliths in your abdominal organs, such as your stomach or intestines. |
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Other Causes |
In young people, phleboliths are associated with benign tumor growth. These kinds of masses can also indicate more serious growths, such as stomach cancer or other gastrointestinal tumors. |
Home Remedies for Phlebolith
At home there is a fairly easy treatment that can help alleviate the problem, although it will still require at least one trip to the doctor.
Apply Wet Washcloth
You will need to apply warm water to the problem area. A wet washcloth works great and you should be applying it to the affected area several times each day.
Elevate Affected Area
You will also need to keep the area elevated, above the heart whenever possible. This will keep too much blood from forcing itself through the area.
Take Anti-inflammation Medications
The final step of healing your phleboliths is to take anti-inflammattion medications. Your doctor will have to give you these, but they are important when recovering from this kind of condition, even if it did not result in any other conditions that you know of.
Medical Treatments for Phlebolith
More serious cases can require medical treatment. These vary according to your own specific case, but they are generally saved for extreme cases.
Sclerotherapy
Sclerotherapy is used to treat venous malformations by closing the veins. A needle is inserted and is used to inject a radioactive dye that will shrink the vein, closing it off. This is not permanent, however, and may have to be repeated in the future.
Endovenous Laser Therapy
Endovenous laser therapy is a relatively new kind of procedure and uses tiny laser fibers to close problematic veins. It is normally used for varicose veins, but it can easily remove phleboliths as well. This particular method is minimally invasive and actually only requires about an hour to perform.
Surgical Excision
Surgical excision is only used in the most extreme cases. Once other methods are exhausted, a surgeon can open you up to completely remove the vein, along with the tissue that surrounds it.
Preventions for Phlebolith
Avoiding them in the future is ideal and the way to do it will actually lead to a healthier life in general.
Avoid Prolonged Inactivity
Make sure to avoid prolonged periods of inactivity. Even if you are only taking a quick walk, stretching your arms, and getting off the couch for once, you will make sure that your blood flow is properly managed.
Avoid Tight Clothing
Tight clothing can cause a host of problems, but phleboliths are one of the most common. This is especially important around your waist.
Drink Plenty of Fluids
Drinking plenty of water each day is important to everyone. When you are dehydrated, your blood pressure rises and the vein walls will be much more likely to give in to phleboliths.