Technology guide
Venous return and venous stasis
How blood travels from the legs back to the heart, why it sometimes stagnates, and what a professional can offer or should refer to a doctor.
Venous return
Unlike the arteries, which are driven by the heart, the veins must carry blood back to the heart with little pressure, often against gravity. They manage this thanks to several mechanisms working together.
What drives the return
The muscle pump: with each step, the calf muscles compress the veins and drive the blood upwards. The valves: small flaps prevent the blood from flowing back down. Breathing: inhalation creates suction towards the heart. The veins, being very supple, also act as a reservoir.
When blood stagnates
Prolonged immobility, less effective valves, a sedentary lifestyle, pregnancy, excess weight, heat, heredity and hormones all promote stasis. Pressure rises in the leg veins and fluid passes into the tissues: swelling, heaviness, cramps, and sometimes varicose veins and changes in skin colour.
Signs that require a doctor
A leg that suddenly swells and is painful, warm and red may indicate phlebitis (thrombosis): this is a medical emergency. Severe varicose veins, wounds that do not heal or skin that turns brown also require medical follow-up.
What helps
Walking, swimming or cycling regularly, moving every hour, raising the legs, wearing compression if prescribed, keeping a stable weight. In the treatment room, pressotherapy mimics the muscle pump and drainage mobilises fluids: they relieve the feeling of heavy legs alongside these habits.