Spider veins are unsightly large and prominent veins that bulge and appear around the legs. They are twisted blood vessels that may be red, purple, or blue. Fortunately, spider vein removal is an accessible treatment that can easily eradicate these unsightly veins.
The question is, is spider vein removal permanent? Or will you see the same unattractive veins making an appearance even after taking the treatment? This post will grant you answers to those questions and more.
What are the Treatments for Spider Vein Removal?
The various treatments for spider vein removal are sclerotherapy, endovenous ablation therapy, endoscopic vein surgery, laser therapy, and more. Unfortunately, most of the treatments are invasive – which means they require making incisions to open the skin.
Let’s discuss these treatments one by one.
Sclerotherapy
Sclerotherapy is probably the most popular treatment for spider veins and varicose veins. This treatment injects irritants into the veins that will cause them to collapse. The irritants cause the insides of the veins to scar the inside of the vein.
The blood will then go through another route and flow through healthier veins. When the scarred veins collapse, they will just die out. The body will slowly absorb the defunct tissue of the collapsed veins.
Slowly, the veins will not be visible on the skin anymore. You might need several treatments for sclerotherapy to work. Each treatment session is spaced four to six weeks apart.
The treatment does not need anesthesia as the only discomfort associated is the sensation of needle pricks from each injection. You have to wear compression stockings for a few weeks after each session.
Sclerotherapy is a permanent solution vein removal treatment.
Endovenous Ablation Therapy
Endovenous ablation therapy uses either laser or radio waves to create heat and scar the inside of offending spider veins. The doctor will inject a numbing agent to the treatment site before making a small incision for a catheter.
The catheter is a slim tube that emits laser or radio waves to create heat. The heat causes scar tissue to form in the vein and ultimately close it. This treatment causes no pain; you will only feel the needle’s sting for the numbing agent injection.
After the treatment, you have to wear a compression bandage around the treatment site for some time. Because endovenous ablation therapy causes the same effect on the veins, it is also a permanent solution. The scarring on the veins will close them and get them absorbed by the surrounding tissues.
Endoscopic Vein Surgery
Endoscopic vein surgery looks a lot like endovenous ablation therapy, but it works differently. Both surgeries use a catheter to get to the insides of the veins. But their catheters function differently.
In endovenous ablation therapy, a catheter heats the insides of the veins. But with endoscopic vein surgery, the catheter only uses a camera and a surgical device. The doctor uses the catheter to move through the vein and close it surgically.
Just like with endovenous ablation therapy, you will also need a numbing agent and a small incision on your skin for endoscopic vein surgery. Unlike the previous two treatments, you will need to take a break from your daily routines for about two weeks after having an endoscopic vein surgery.
Endoscopic vein surgery is another permanent solution. Once this treatment closes a vein, that vein will eventually die, and the surrounding tissues will absorb it.
Laser Therapy
Laser therapy is the ideal option for treating spider veins. Spider veins are smaller versions of varicose veins. The previous vein removal treatments discussed are actually more suited for more prominent veins like varicose veins.
Laser therapy does not need to make incisions to work or use needles. Of all the vein removal treatments, laser therapy is the least invasive. In fact, it is entirely non-invasive.
The doctor will use bursts of high-intensity lights to close the veins.
The principle is the same with endovenous ablation therapy. The high-intensity lights will heat the veins and cause them to scar. The scarring, in turn, starves the veins of blood flow and eventually kills them.
Laser treatment can make spider veins disappear immediately or just a few hours after the treatment. But it also works on more prominent varicose veins, except for the therapy taking more time to take effect. For varicose veins, laser therapy can take one to three months to take effect.
You may need three or more sessions to clear the veins away wholly. You can return to your daily routine as soon as the session is over. But you have to wear compression stockings for a short while after each session.
It is best to protect your skin from the sun for three or four weeks after each session to prevent dark spots from forming. Protecting your skin from sun exposure after any laser treatment is good practice.
Laser therapy is another permanent vein removal solution.
These Treatments are Permanent. But Why Do I See Spider Veins Return?
Yes, the procedures discussed here are all permanent vein removal treatments. But sometimes, you might notice spider veins forming in the same area where you already had the treatment. These veins are not the same veins you had closed in the past.
Although the treatments will close and eradicate veins permanently, they can’t prevent the future formation of new spider veins. If you want to escape spider veins’ appearance permanently, you have to take preventive measures.
Preventive measures all include encouraging better blood circulation. The best practices include:
- Regular exercise
- Elevating your legs – the most common site for spider veins
- Avoiding being in hot baths for extended periods
- Don’t sit for 30 minutes straight
- Not standing for more than 30 minutes at a time
Skilled Hands are Required
These treatments are useless if performed by unskilled hands. You need professionals who know what they are doing. Those professionals are in Biorestoration Medical & Aesthetics, Utah’s most advanced health clinic.
Contact us for vein removal treatments at 801-501-9797 or info@biorestoration.com. You can also visit us at 12340 South 450 East, Draper, Utah 84020.
