A rare cause of foot drop after radiofrequency ablation for varicose veins: Case report and review of the literature

The treatment option for varicose veins (VV) is mainly surgery both open and minimally invasive. Even though mortality and major morbidity are rare with surgery, minor neurological complications like cutaneous nerve injuries remain a common problem. Involvement of major branches of sciatic nerve is extremely a rare complication of radiofrequency ablation (RFA), the other treatment option for VV. To the best of our knowledge, injury to both peroneal and tibial nerves has not been reported following RFA procedure. We report a very rare complication of sudden onset foot drop after RFA for VV. Lack of knowledge of such symptoms may lead to misdiagnosis and electrodiagnostic and magnetic resonance imaging studies can help in correct diagnosis.