Radiofrequency ablation and laser ablation in the treatment of varicose veins.

Chronic venous insufficiency is a major medical disease in the United States. With a total population of 300 million, it is estimated that 25 million persons in this country alone have symptoms of this disease (1 in 12). Great saphenous vein reflux is the most common form of venous insufficiency in symptomatic patients and is most frequently responsible for varicose veins of the lower extremity. Therefore, therapy directed toward correcting superficial venous pathology is beneficial to many patients.