Q: What are varicose veins, and what causes them?A: The left heart pumps blood that has been oxygenated by the lungs into the aorta and subsequently to the other arteries of the body. This arterial blood then goes into the capillaries to bring oxygen and glucose to the body’s cells, “using up” the last of the “push” from the heart, so the subsequent flow of blood through the venous system is not driven by the pumping [...]