Leg Venous Doppler Ultrasound in Colombia
Dr. Jorge Vives is a radiologist: he studies the veins of your legs with maneuvers — compressing the calf and asking you to bear down — because reflux has to be provoked to be seen. You leave knowing what the scan showed, whether there is insufficiency and which veins it comes from.
If a leg has suddenly become swollen, painful, warm or red, do not book: be seen today. That can be a deep vein thrombosis. And if you are short of breath, your chest hurts, you are coughing up blood, your heartbeat is fast or irregular, or you feel dizzy or faint, call emergency services.
Radiologist
Specialist, Universidad de Cartagena
Since 2014
Dedicated to ultrasound and Doppler
Same day
Report explained during the visit
Same-day report
Explained to you in the same visit
- WHAT THE STUDY IS
What is a leg venous Doppler?
It is an ultrasound study that looks at two things at once: how the veins of your legs appear and how the blood moves inside them. That second part is the Doppler, and it turns an image into a functional test.
It answers two different questions, and they should not be mixed up. The first is whether a clot is blocking a vein, which is the urgent one. The second is whether the valves close properly or let blood fall back, which is behind varicose veins, heavy legs at the end of the day and swelling.
You stay on the examination table throughout. What makes the reflux visible is not a change of posture but the maneuvers: Dr. Vives compresses the calf and releases it, or asks you to bear down, and watches whether the blood falls back and for how many seconds. Without provoking it, a reflux can go completely unnoticed.
- THE ESSENTIALS
Six things worth knowing beforehand
What patients usually want to know before they book.
Provoked with maneuvers
Reflux is not visible at rest: it has to be provoked to be measured.
No preparation
No fasting and no medication to stop.
30 to 45 minutes
Two legs, several territories and maneuvers.
With maneuvers
The calf is compressed and you bear down: that provokes the reflux.
Reflux is measured
In seconds, which is how insufficiency is graded.
Dr. Vives reads it
The same radiologist who takes the images writes the report.
- WHEN IT IS RECOMMENDED
When is a leg venous Doppler recommended?
There are two very different reasons: a suspected thrombosis, which is urgent, and the study of varicose veins and heavy legs, which is planned.
Suspected thrombosis
A leg recently swollen, painful or warm. Be seen the same day, not booked.
Visible varicose veins
To find which vein they come from before treating them.
Heavy legs at the end of the day
Tired legs that feel better when you raise them.
Swollen ankles
Above all when it is only one leg.
Skin changes
Dark patches or hardening near the ankle.
Before varicose vein surgery
Your surgeon needs the map of which vein is failing.
- HOW IT WORKS
Your visit, step by step
Two positions, two legs and several maneuvers. No preparation beforehand.
Lying down, first
The superficial veins
The maneuvers
The result explained
What is looked for
Two different questions,
one study
A venous Doppler answers two things that should not be mixed up: whether there is a clot, which is the urgent one, and whether the valves are failing, which lies behind varicose veins and heavy legs.
Color shows the blood moving inside the vein, and whether it flows on or falls back.
What you leave the visit with
- Whether or not there is a thrombosis, which is the urgent question.
- The map of which veins have reflux and how many seconds it lasts.
- A written report in digital format, ready for your physician or your vascular surgeon.
- The next step, explained with the image in front of you.
A clot blocking a deep vein. This is the urgent one and the vein does not flatten under pressure.
The valves do not close and blood falls back. It is graded in seconds of reflux.
Which vein they come from. This is the map the surgeon needs.
In a vein near the surface. Less serious, but it changes the follow-up.
Behind the knee. It can cause symptoms like a thrombosis, so telling them apart matters.
If a thrombosis is suspected, do not leave it until tomorrow. A leg that has recently become swollen, painful or warm is seen the same day: time changes what is done. And a scan that finds no clot does not always close the question — with high clinical suspicion your doctor may repeat it. An ultrasound describes what is there; treatment is decided by your treating physician.
- FROM ANOTHER COUNTRY
If you are traveling from outside Colombia
You can book before you travel and get the whole study done in one appointment.
- Book from abroad through the form on this page, with no intermediaries.
- Your report the same day, so you do not need a second trip.
- If you have just taken a long flight and one leg is swollen or painful, do not leave it until the end of the trip: be seen the same day, where you are.
- Bring any previous Doppler: comparing is the only way to show whether the insufficiency has progressed.
Where he practices
Three cities, one schedule
Permanent office
Cartagena
CC Bocagrande, Carrera 2 #8-142, floor 2, office 218.
Scheduled dates
Bogotá
In medical cowork spaces. The address is confirmed when you book.
Scheduled dates
Medellín
In medical cowork spaces. The address is confirmed when you book.
- ABOUT THE SPECIALIST
Dr. Jorge Vives Gutiérrez
- Universidad de Cartagena
- Degree recognized in Spain
- Speaker at international congresses
- Colombian board-certified radiologist — ACR member
- Member of the CMAC and AAAM expert committees
- International speaker for the Colombian Association of Radiology
- Pioneer of ultrasound-guided facial fillers in Colombia
- Faculty: Course on Ultrasound and Intervention in Facial Aesthetics
- BOOKING
Book your leg venous Doppler
Tell us what is going on and whether you have a referral, and we will confirm the available dates in Cartagena, Medellín or Bogotá.
- FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
Frequently asked questions about leg venous Doppler
What patients ask most before their study.
How much does a leg venous Doppler cost?
It depends on whether one leg or both are studied, and on whether the arterial system is included. Send us your referral through the form on this page and we will confirm the cost and the payment options.
Do I need any preparation?
No. No fasting and no medication to stop. Wear something comfortable that lets the legs be uncovered completely, and skip compression stockings that day if you can.
My referral says "venous Doppler of the lower limbs". Is this it?
Yes, it is the same study. It may also appear as “Doppler ultrasound of the venous vessels of the lower limbs” or “venous duplex”. Bring it: it says what your doctor was looking for.
Do I have to stand up for the study?
You do not have to. The study is done on the examination table, and what makes a leaking valve show is the maneuver — compressing the calf or asking you to bear down — not standing up. Without those maneuvers a real reflux can be reported as normal.
Does it hurt?
No. The only thing you feel is the pressure of the probe when it compresses, which is part of the examination. If an area is very sore, say so: it is studied more gently.
Does the study tell me whether I have a thrombosis?
It is one of its two main jobs and the test of choice for it. As explained above, a normal scan does not always settle it, and your doctor may repeat it. And if the suspicion is of a thrombosis right now, do not book: be seen the same day, because time changes what is done.
Will it tell me whether my varicose veins need surgery?
It gives the map your surgeon needs: which veins have reflux, where it starts and how long it lasts. The decision to operate, and with which technique, is theirs and not the image’s. There are no known risks from the scan itself, and it is not contraindicated in pregnancy.