Discovery leads to a life- and limb-changing treatmentJanMichael Schulist, 74, was expecting to discuss her heart health during a regular checkup with Chanaka Wickramasinghe, MD, a Board Certified Cardiologist at Eisenhower Desert Cardiology Center. After all, this was the doctor, known to his patients as "Dr. Wick," who had diagnosed her with angina, a finding that led to stent surgery to prevent a potentially fatal "widow-maker" heart attack.As Schulist waited in the exam room, she noticed a poster on the wall. The poster highlighted a condition called chronic venous insufficiency (CVI) in which weakened valves in the leg veins cause a backwash of blood, slowing its return to the heart. Over time, blood pools in the legs, leading to varicose veins, swelling, leg pain, skin changes, discoloration, and eventually, leg ulcers.It's estimated that more than 175 million people in the United States have CVI.