BACKGROUND: Varicose vein surgery of the lower limbs is one of the most frequent procedures carried out in the Brazilian public health system (Sistema Único de Saúde), especially during task forces focused on elective surgeries. However, detailed information on the results of such initiatives are absent in the literature, particularly with regard to the population that benefits from the task forces. OBJECTIVES: To present and discuss the profile of patients operated on during a task force for varicose vein surgery carried out in a public health institution. METHODS: The patients were selected from a database organized by the Brazilian Health Ministry for the program of elective surgeries, and they had no previous link with the hospital institution. A protocol for objective evaluation with the clinical data and demographic profile of the patients was applied. The patients were staged according to CEAP classification. RESULTS: From September 2005 to January 2006, 100 patients (106 procedures) underwent surgery, females being predominant (85% of the cases). Mean age was 35±9.8 years. Predominant schooling level among patients was primary school (53%). C2 (49.5%) and C3 (39%) were the most frequent CEAP classes in the clinical evaluation of lower limbs. A total of 106 surgeries was performed (100 patients). The preferred anesthetic technique was block anesthesia (93% of the procedures). Six patients were submitted to two different procedures due to great volume of lower limb varicose veins; 33 patients were submitted to internal saphenous vein stripping (four cases of segmental saphenous vein stripping); and eight patients were submitted to bilateral total saphenous vein stripping. CONCLUSION: Profile of the population that benefited from the task force for varicose vein surgeries was: young symptomatic female patients, with low schooling level, moderate stages of disease, especially in CEAP clinical classes C2 and C3, and who require surgeries of moderate and long duration for the treatment of their diseases.
Varicose veins; venous insufficiency; health profile
