Chronic Venous Insufficiency

Chronic venous insufficiency (CVI) reflects valve incompetence and venous hypertension, causing edema, heaviness, varicosities, stasis dermatitis, and ulcer risk at the gaiter area. Nursing emphasizes compression therapy when not contraindicated, skin care, mobility, elevation, and differentiating from acute DVT. Why it matters for nursing care: Chronic Venous Insufficiency requires early recognition, careful trend assessment, and rapid prioritization when the patient begins to deteriorate. Clinical decisions should connect the underlying pathophysiology to the bedside picture so the nurse can distinguish a stable finding from a red flag that changes urgency, monitoring frequency, and provider communication. Exam relevance: Boards test compression contraindications (ABI themes when arterial disease coexists) and avoiding injudicious diuretics when edema is venous rather than cardiogenic unless ordered for comorbid HF. The topic is encountered across common nursing settings such as the emergency department, medical-surgical units, telemetry, critical care, perioperative areas, community follow-up, and discharge teaching. A strong answer does not memorize isolated facts; it explains why a finding is clinically important, how nursing priorities change as severity rises, and which complications require urgent escalation. On the exam, writers...