/assets/images/provider/photos/2720432.jpeg)
Although varicose veins and spider veins aren’t harmful, they can sometimes be irritating and unsightly. Find out how to get clear and beautiful legs free of varicose veins or spider veins with sclerotherapy.
Varicose veins are large, red, swollen blood vessels that twist and turn. These veins can develop due to faulty valves or a weak spot in the blood vessel wall. They’re easy to spot on your skin, and most develop on your calves and thighs.
Spider veins are a milder form of varicose veins that can be red, blue, or purple in appearance. These can also be clearly seen on your skin but only affect your capillaries, the smallest type of blood vessel. Spider veins also appear most often on your legs but can affect the face, as well.
Genetics, fluctuations in hormones, obesity, and a history of blood clots can all put you at risk for varicose veins and spider veins. While they’re typically harmless, they can be unsightly. So, if you’re looking to diminish the appearance of spider veins and varicose veins on your legs, you might be considering some cosmetic treatment options.
One of those treatment options is sclerotherapy. Our team at Thomas Dermatology offers sclerotherapy to help you achieve beautifully flawless and clear-skinned legs. In this blog, we review how this treatment works to eliminate varicose veins and spider veins.
Explaining sclerotherapy
Sclerotherapy is a treatment method for reducing the appearance of varicose veins or spider veins on the legs. It works by injecting a special solution — called a sclerosant solution — into the damaged vein. The solution irritates the lining of the blood vessel, causing your vein to collapse and then scar.
Due to the scarring, that vein is no longer usable, so your blood starts to flow to other, unaffected veins. Over time, your body absorbs the injected vein until it’s no longer visible.
Sclerotherapy can be used to treat varicose veins and spider veins that are on your thighs, ankles, calves, and feet. You may not be a good candidate for sclerotherapy if you have a history of blood clots or if you’re pregnant or breastfeeding.
How to prepare for sclerotherapy
Before we perform sclerotherapy for your varicose veins or spider veins, our team sits down with you to review your medical history and discuss any medications you’re currently taking, including dietary supplements or over-the-counter drugs.
You may need to wait to finish up any antibiotics before going through sclerotherapy, and you also need to stop taking all blood thinners and anti-inflammatory medications such as ibuprofen, since these can affect the procedure.
The sclerotherapy process
A huge benefit of sclerotherapy is that it’s noninvasive and requires no recovery or downtime.
When we start your sclerotherapy procedure, we have you lie back on a table with your legs slightly raised. We use a very small needle to slowly inject the sclerosant solution into the varicose veins or spider veins. You should only feel minor cramping or stinging as the solution does its job of targeting the affected vein.
Once all of the solution has been injected, we massage the area to make sure blood stays out of the vein and the solution spreads evenly.
You can go home that same day, but you’ll need to avoid heavy exercise and wear compression stockings for about two weeks after the procedure. The results of the procedure can vary. For small veins, you may notice a difference in about 3-6 weeks; however, larger veins may take up to four months to fade.
To learn more about sclerotherapy, or to book a consultation, call your nearest office location, or use our online scheduler. We proudly serve the Las Vegas and Henderson, Nevada, and Lake Havasu City, Kingman, and Bullhead City, Arizona, areas.