The skin on both of my legs from the middle of the calf down pass my ankles are are turning brown are warm to touch and burn it feels like they have been sun burned but0 haven't been out in the sun what could this be of what is causing this?

Without : Without actually seeing it, i can speculate on an answer as best i can... One of the causes of a dark discoloration of the skin in the lower legs is something called hemosiderin deposits in the skin. This is related to the pooling of blood (from gravity and varicose veins). The varicose veins you have might be too deep to actually see (only the tiny superficial varicose veins are the ones we can see and are aware of). Red blood cells have a life of 120 days. When they die, they break apart, and the hemoglobin molecule inside is released. It's this hemoglobin that gives our red blood cells their red color. When the hemoglobin is released from a dying red blood cell, the hemoglobin is released into our general blood circulation (giving our blood its red appearance), and is absorbed by the body. But if blood pools or is stagnant in one particular area (like the lower legs because it's having a hard time fighting gravity to return to the heart due to varicose veins), when the red blood cells die and the hemoglobin breaks out, it can stain the local tissues, staining them a reddish brown, the color of hemoglobin, and this is called hemosiderin. Once the tissues are stained this way, it doesn't clear up or go away. Over time, with continued pooling of blood, the tissues get darker and darker. In severe cases, the skin can open up and ulcerate, causing what's called a venous stasis ulcer. The treatment is to address the underlying cause... The pooling of blood. So your best bet is to see a vascular surgeon, who can evaluate your veins and find out just why you're pooling blood in your lower legs. There is treatment for this to prevent it from getting worse, but there is no treatment that will remove the hemosiderin that's already present in your skin (although some laser treatments have been somewhat effective). Hope this helps! good luck.

As : As noted in the first answer provided, this is likely the result of venous disease. You may not have varicose veins, but you likely have something known as "venous insufficiency, " which basically means your veins don't work very well. Venous insufficiency is the result of vein valves that have failed, resulting in blood returning towards the ankle, rather than moving towards the heart (which is normally what occurs). As time goes by, the increased pooling of blood that results from these valves failing and blood refluxing backwards, leads to increased pressure, which results in the pigment that gives blood its color, to leak; this gets deposited in the tissue underneath your skin and changes the color permanently. Once you develop this you are at risk of further damage, and this may lead to breaks in the skin. You need to see a vascular surgeon who can address this issue directly (and to ensure that there are no other reasons for this). There is hope, but it is best to see someone soon. In the meantime, you may want to get some compression stockings to help reduce some of the pressure on your veins. I hope this helped.

The : The previous two answers are good, and explains the brown discoloration. The body sees the changes present (skin discoloration, swelling) as abnormal and this results in an inflammatory response which is quite complex, and the warmth and burning pain are the outward signs of this reaction, subsequently leading to lipodermatosclerosis, a leathery, thickened skin and scarring of the underlying tissue. These changes are then vulnerable to breakdown and venous stasis ulceration can be seen. Seeking help from a phlebologist is in order. An ultrasound study of the venous system of the legs will go a long way to identify the insufficient veins which can be nicely treated with ablation procedures using radio frequency or laser. Sclerotherapy of branched varicose, microphlebectomy of varicose veins are preformed when indicated.

Venous hypertension: I completely agree with drs. Fox, hernandez, and isobe and their great answers. When someone has the kind of skin changes you are describing, we call that venous dermatitis. This falls into a category of vein disease that is called chronic venous insufficiency. This is more severe than run of the mill varicose veins. You risk of developing a venous ulcer is higher as a result.