Zuoying Branch

The National Health Insurance (NHI) program began in Taiwan in 1995 and covers more than 99% of the entire population, with approximately 23 million beneficiaries [13]. This retrospective cohort study was conducted using inpatient files from the Taiwan NHI Research Database (NHIRD). Diagnostic codes based on the ICD-9-CM were retrieved from NHIRD [13, 14].

Introduction Varicose veins is a common vascular disease in developed countries. (1) The disease is characterized by clearly visible, dilated, tortuous, and possibly prominent subcutaneous veins in the lower extremities. (2) Previous studies using self-reported questionnaires have estimated the prevalence of VVs at 31 and 32%, respectively.

Cheng-Ken Tsai1, 2, 3, Oswald Ndi Nfor3, Disline Manli Tantoh3, 4, Wen-Yu Lu3 and Yung-Po Liaw3, 4, 5* 1Division of Cardiovascular Surgery, Department of Surgery, Zuoying Branch of Kaohsiung Armed Forces General Hospital, Taiwan 2National Defense Medical Center, Taiwan 3Department of Public Health and Institute of Public Health, Chung Shan Medical University, Taiwan 4Department of Medical Imaging, Chung Shan Medical University Hospital, Taiwan 5Institute of Medicine, College of Medicine,...