What is the Best Vein Treatment for Spider and Varicose Veins?

In this article we compare advantages and disadvantages of every available treatment for Spider and Varicose Veins to help you decide which treatment is best for you if you are considering vein treatment.

Are you considering getting Vein Treatment done? If so, below is a must read article. With so many spider and varicose vein treatment options out there, with so many different types of doctor for vein disease, it’s hard to navigate what the best option is for you. We hope that the below article will help empower you to make the right decision on which type of treatment to have and in choosing which vein doctor is best for you.

Progress in the field of vein treatment has outpaced almost any other medical technology over the past three decades. With the development of minimally invasive spider and varicose vein treatment options, addressing your vein problems has gone from awful and unreliable to safe and effective awesome. But the number of different treatment options can almost seem overwhelming, and selecting the best type of vein treatment, vein specialist, and vein clinic can be tricky. In this article, we’ll break down the best treatments depending on the issue you want to address, and provide a step-by-step guide to finding a great vein doctor near you that will carry out these vein treatments effectively and safely.

Also known as: Ablation, Radiofrequency Ablation, Laser Ablation

Best For: Large varicose veins, vein symptoms including discomfort, heaviness, leg fatigue, restless legs, cramps, treating venous insufficiency (the underlying cause of spider veins and varicose veins)

Endovenous ablation is a safe and effective treatment option that has replaced procedures such as vein stripping. When performing an ablation, your vein specialist will gently numb the surface of your skin and place a tiny device inside your unhealthy vein. The device is capable of generating heat by producing high intensity sound waves (a technology known as radiofrequency). Your vein doctor then surrounds the vein with a protective numbing fluid, and activates the device, delivering heat to the walls of the vein. The unhealthy vein is sealed closed, and over time is reabsorbed completely by the body. Blood flow is re-routed to healthier veins, so your circulation becomes more efficient.

Laser uses light to create energy and heat, radiofrequency uses sound waves as described above. A good vein doctor will have reasons to choose one device over the other and will be willing to explain his or her reasons to you in detail. Ablation technology has been around for over ten years, and is an absolute requirement for a good vein clinic. Our doctors have performed hundreds of ablations procedures, and are very comfortable with this top treatment option.

Also known as: Vein Glue

Best For: vein symptoms including discomfort, heaviness, leg fatigue, restless legs, cramps, treating venous insufficiency (the underlying cause of spider veins and varicose veins)

VenaSeal, or Vein Glue, is one of the newest technologies used to treat veins. Your vein doctor will identify the unhealthy vein using an ultrasound machine. Her or she will then gently numb an entry point to gain access into the vein. Once the vein is accessed, a delivery device called a catheter is inserted into the vein. This catheter contains the cyanoacrylate glue.

Also known as:  Saline Injections, Salt Solution Injections, STS, vein injections, cosmetic sclerotherapy

Best For: Spider veins, small varicose veins

First, your vein doctor will identify the target vein visually on the surface of the skin or under ultrasound guidance. Your vein doctor will either use a small needle to enter surface spider veins and inject them with a sclerotherapy solution or use the ultrasound to inject veins slightly below the surface of your skin. The solution irritates the inside lining of the vein causing it to collapse.

Also known as: Vein Injections, Foam Sclerotherapy

Best For: Large varicose veins, small varicose veins

Similar to liquid sclerotherapy, your vein doctor will identify the vein visually on the surface of the skin or with the help of ultrasound technology. Once identified, your vein doctor will enter the vein and prepare to inject the sclerotherapy solution. To make sure the foam is fresh, the vein doctor will prepare the solution immediately before injecting it by mixing air and medication rapidly between two syringes.

Also known as: foam sclerotherapy

Best For: Large Varicose veins, vein symptoms including discomfort, heaviness, leg fatigue, restless legs, cramps, treating venous insufficiency (the underlying cause of spider veins and varicose veins)

Similar to regular foam sclerotherapy, your vein doctor will identify the vein visually on the surface of the skin or with the help of ultrasound technology.  Once identified, your vein doctor will either use a small needle to enter surface veins and inject them with a sclerotherapy solution or use ultrasound guidances to inject those veins slightly below the surface of your skin.

Also known as: Mechanochemical Ablation

Best For: Vein symptoms including discomfort, heaviness, leg fatigue, restless legs, cramps, treating venous insufficiency (the underlying cause of spider veins and varicose veins)

Your vein doctor will prep the area with a cleaning solution. The unhealthy vein is then identified using an ultrasound. The vein doctor will then gently numb an entry point to gain access to the vein. One the vein is accessed, a delivery device called a catheter is inserted into the vein.

Also known as: phlebectomy, vein stripping, vein removal

Best For: Very large varicose veins

After the unhealthy vein is identified under ultrasound, the patient is taken to the operating room under anesthesia. The vein doctor will then perform a cut down, or cutting into the skin overlying the diseased vein.