Is Laser Vein Removal Effective?
Is Laser Vein Removal Effective? According to VIP Medical Group
Are you suffering from varicose veins or spider veins? If so, you’re probably suffering from an underlying circulatory disorder known as chronic venous insufficiency.
This is a serious medical condition in which your vein valves collapse and blood accumulates in your leg veins. The continued accumulation of blood in your leg veins eventually leads to vein dilation and the formation of spider veins and varicose veins.
If you have vein disease, you need to seek treatment immediately because it’s a chronic condition that progresses rapidly. If you don’t treat vein disease promptly, you may suffer from various other vein diseases like skin discoloration, swollen ankles and feet, leg ulcers, and even deep vein thrombosis.
People often talk about laser vein removal as the best vein treatment out there. But that’s not entirely correct — there are a lot of effective spider veins and varicose veins treatments out there.
In this article, we discuss if laser vein removal is effective and what are the other best spider vein treatments and varicose veins treatments.
How to Get Rid of Spider Veins?
Spider veins are dense clusters of reddish or bluish blood vessels on the surface of the skin. They can be seen in clusters that resemble the branches of trees or spider webs.
Spider veins may or may not be caused by underlying venous insufficiency. If spider veins are caused by underlying vein disease, then the vein doctor will have to treat the underlying diseased saphenous vein. However, if the spider veins aren’t caused by vein disease, then the vein doctor can simply remove the spider veins.
In this section, we’ll focus on the treatments used to treat spider veins if they’re not indicative of an underlying disease.
Laser Treatment for Spider Veins — NOT Recommended
Laser treatment for spider veins is a procedure in which the vein doctor uses blue light or lasers to treat spider veins. The non-UV laser releases heat-generating photons that gradually destroy the superficial blood vessels. The damaged spider veins gradually shrink and dissolve.
Laser treatment for spider veins, however, is extremely ineffective and is only recommended by medical spas because it doesn’t have to be administered by a licensed or qualified vein doctor. This procedure is extremely slow and you have to go for dozens of expensive sessions before you see any difference at all.
The only time that laser treatment for spider veins is suitable is when you have spider veins on your face or feet.
Sclerotherapy for Spider Veins — Best Spider Vein Treatment
Sclerotherapy is the best spider vein treatment available and it has been the favored treatment for spider veins for several decades. During this procedure, the vein doctor injects a sclerosant solution into the spider veins to fuse their walls and turn them into scar tissues so they eventually get absorbed by the body.
Sclerotherapy is a minimally invasive and non-surgical procedure. It concludes within 30 minutes with no downtime so you can resume your daily activities immediately. It’s also painless and doesn’t lead to significant side effects. A single sclerotherapy session can reduce the appearance of spider veins by 50-80%, which makes it far better than the aforementioned laser vein removal method.
The only time sclerotherapy isn’t suitable is in regards to spider veins on the face or feet. These regions are dense with artery-venous connections and it isn’t safe to inject sclerosant into arteries, which is why vein doctors generally avoid sclerotherapy in these parts.
How to Get Rid of Varicose Veins?
Varicose veins are large blood vessels that appear in a twisted and knotted form bulging out of the surface of the skin. Unlike spider veins, varicose veins are always caused by underlying vein disease. As such, all minimally invasive varicose veins treatments focus on treating the underlying diseased saphenous vein.
Endovenous Laser Vein Removal
Endovenous laser vein removal is an extremely effective varicose vein treatment with a high success rate. During the procedure, the vein doctor inserts an endovenous laser — a catheter with a laser fiber — into the diseased saphenous vein under ultrasound guidance. The entire procedure is done with local anesthesia so you don’t feel any of it. Once the catheter is in place, the vein doctor activates it to generate laser energy that immediately collapses the diseased saphenous vein, thus restoring blood circulation to the heart.
This is a minimally invasive and non-surgical procedure but it also causes considerable post-procedural pain and discomfort. As such, even though this procedure is highly effective, it’s not the best varicose vein removal method because of the consequent pain and discomfort.
Radiofrequency Ablation
Radiofrequency ablation is widely considered to be the best varicose vein removal method. During this procedure, the vein doctor inserts a catheter into the diseased vein ultrasound guidance and through an incision on the surface of your skin. This catheter generates heat energy that irritates the vein walls and eventually collapses it altogether. The accumulated blood reroutes to healthier deep veins for effective blood circulation.
This procedure is minimally invasive, non-surgical, and it doesn’t cause any post-procedural pain or discomfort, making it the best varicose vein treatment. This procedure also concludes within an hour with no downtime.
Schedule an Appointment with the Best Vein Doctor
Vein Treatment Clinic has some of the country’s finest vein doctors who diagnose the root cause of your spider veins and varicose veins and treat them using the latest minimally invasive treatments such as sclerotherapy, radiofrequency ablation, or endovenous laser ablation. For more information, please schedule an appointment with the best vein doctor in your location today.
Book a Consultation
Scheduling a consultation with one of our vein treatment experts is one of the best ways to determine the proper resolution for your varicose veins. The treatments can include sclerotherapy, laser or radiofrequency ablation, a medication called Varithena, or procedures such as Venaseal, or Clarivein.