Spider Veins 101 Part 3

How can one get rid of spider veins?

The three common techniques of getting rid of spider veins are sclerotherapy, intense light therapy and laser.

Sclerotherapy

Sclerotherapy basically involves injection of spider veins with an irritant chemical. The chemical causes collapse of spider veins and this eventually causing clearing of the vein. Sclerotherapy only works for spider veins and not varicose veins. The solution must be injected into the spider vein and then one wears a compression garment for about a week. Each spider vein requires a separate injection. Sure, there is pain with the procedure. The procedure is done as an outpatient, it is quite cheap and has little downtime.

The majority of individuals require multiple sessions because after 20 needles sticks most patients want to stop. After the procedure, bruising, redness, and mild tenderness is common. If your physician goofs up, the irritant chemical can also leak out and cause permanent darkening of the skin which is worse than what you had before.

Intense Light Therapy:

Intense light therapy (ILP) is same as a laser. It uses light to generate heat which then destroys the spider veins. There are many such light devices. The benefit of IPL is that it can also be used to treat deeper skin lesions- but this also hurts more. IPL is also more expensive than sclerotherapy and sometimes does not work. Most individuals require multiple sessions to get rid of spider veins.

Can laser be used to treat spider veins?

Sure, lasers are the best way to treat spider veins if you have the money. Laser is much faster, effective and there is minimal downtime- but it is also the most expensive. Today, there are many types of lasers each with their on pros and cons. In general, most lasers work well. The most important criteria is to seek a physician who has experience. The laser treatments are done as outpatient. The laser is aimed at spider veins and zaps it. The heat energy destroys the vein. In all cases, the spider vein does not immediately disappear but gradually disappears in 4-6 weeks.

Who can undergo laser therapy for spider veins?

There are no firm reasons as to why one cannot undergo laser therapy. However one should:

- Have money
- be in general good health
- be realistic
- be able to make decisions
- not be a smoker (if one does smoke it is
better to stop smoking for a few months)
- have no medical disorder like diabetes, collagen
vascular disease (lupus) etc
- one should not be taking blood thinning medications