Leg ulcer, venous - Causes of venous leg ulcers

A venous leg ulcer can develop after a minor injury if there is a problem with the circulation of blood in your leg veins. If this happens, the pressure inside the veins increases.

This constant high pressure can gradually damage the tiny blood vessels in your skin and make it fragile. As a result, your skin can easily break and form an ulcer after a knock or scratch.

Unless you have treatment to improve the circulation in your legs, the ulcer can take a long time to heal.

Read more about treating venous leg ulcers.

Who's most at risk?

A number of factors can increase your risk of developing a venous leg ulcer, including:

• obesity – this increases the risk of high pressure in the leg veins
• not being able to move for a long period of time – this can weaken the calf muscles, which can affect circulation in the leg veins
• having previously had deep vein thrombosis (DVT) – blood clots that develop in the leg, which can damage valves
• varicose veins – swollen and enlarged veins caused by malfunctioning valves
• previous injury to the leg, such as a broken or fractured bone, which may cause DVT
• previous surgery to the leg, such as a hip replacement or knee replacement, which can prevent you from moving about
• increasing age – as people generally find it harder to move about as they get older