As individuals age, spider and varicose veins appear and increase over time. Many patients are embarrassed by their unsightly appearance and take great care to hide their legs. Others complain of discomfort and the inability to stand for long periods without pain.
Effective, safe, and easy treatments are available that improve this cosmetically undesirable and often painful skin condition.
*Before and after photos are unretouched from Dr. Matthew R. Kelleher's actual patients.
Sclerotherapy is a medical procedure that has been safely used since the 1930s to eliminate varicose veins and spider veins. A chemical effectively eliminates the vein by creating scar tissue that blocks the vein, causing it to close and wither.
Sclerotherapy is a short procedure in which a fine needle is inserted into the target veins and a salt solution is injected. With minimal discomfort and downtime, definitive results can be experienced within three to six weeks. Studies have shown an overall success rate of about 60 to 80 percent in eliminating treated veins.
Spider veins, also known as telangiectasias, are small, sunburst-like blood vessels that are blue, red, or purple in color and usually highly visible. They appear primarily on the legs but may also appear on the face and elsewhere on the body. Spider veins do not serve a physiological purpose, so they can be treated and removed without posing a health problem.
Varicose veins are larger, dilated blood vessels that may be raised above the skin’s surface and often occur in conjunction with spider veins. Not only are varicose veins unsightly, but they may also develop into significant medical problems. Those that are more than 3-4 mm in diameter may cause spontaneous phlebitis or thrombosis, which can be painful and lead to blood clots, tissue death, and skin ulcerations. Rarely, these ulcers may hemorrhage or become cancerous. Furthermore, thrombosis can lead to pulmonary embolism, or the blockage of a lung vessel.
Most varicose veins will also respond to sclerotherapy. However, for larger varicose veins, ambulatory phlebectomy is an excellent choice. In this procedure performed under local anesthesia, varicose veins are removed through micro-incisions made in the skin. These small, 2mm incisions require no sutures and close naturally.
Ambulatory phlebectomy is safer than traditional vein stripping and achieves cosmetically superior results. Performed under local anesthesia, an ambulatory phlebectomy causes little discomfort, and patients can return to normal activities within hours. Unlike the large scars that result from vein stripping, these micro-incisions leave the patient with virtually no scarring.
Through sclerotherapy, laser treatment, and ambulatory phlebectomy, spider and varicose veins can be eliminated. These safe, no-downtime procedures treat the pain, health risks, and undesirable appearance of these veins.
If you were treated for small varicose veins or spider veins, you can usually expect to see definitive results in three to six weeks. Larger veins may require three to four months. However, multiple treatments may be needed to achieve the results you want.
