Get Rid of Spider Veins

Given how many people have them, it's no wonder that a lot of people want to know how to get rid of spider veins. Laser surgery and sclerotherapy are the most common methods used to get rid of spider veins. However, since there is no cure for weak vein valves (a cause of spider veins), you can get rid of spider veins, but they may come back.

 

Getting Rid of Spider Veins: An Overview

The first step to get rid of spider veins is to make sure that they are, in fact, spider veins. Your doctor can diagnose spider veins by looking at them. In addition to this physical exam, your doctor can take x-rays or ultrasound pictures of the vein to find the cause and severity of the spider veins. You may want to speak with a doctor who specializes in vein diseases (phlebology).
 
Talk to your doctor about what treatment options are best for your spider veins and lifestyle. Not all cases of spider veins are the same.
 
If treatment is recommended or desired, options to get rid of spider veins include:
 
  • Sclerotherapy
  • Laser surgery.
     

Get Rid of Spider Veins Through Sclerotherapy

Sclerotherapy is the most common treatment to get rid of spider veins. The doctor injects a solution into the vein that causes the vein walls to swell, stick together, and seal shut. This stops the flow of blood and the vein turns into scar tissue. In a few weeks, the vein should fade. The same vein may need to be treated more than once.
 
This treatment is highly effective if done the right way. Most patients can expect a 50 to 90 percent improvement.
 
Microsclerotherapy is a type of sclerotherapy used to get rid of spider veins. It uses special solutions and injection techniques that increase the success rate for removal of spider veins. Sclerotherapy does not require anesthesia and can be done in the doctor's office.
 
Possible side effects of this spider veins treatment include:
 
  • Temporary stinging or painful cramps where the injection was made
  • Temporary red, raised patches of skin where the injection was made
  • Temporary small skin sores where the injection was made
  • Temporary bruises where the injection was made
  • Spots around the treated vein that usually disappear
  • Brown lines around the treated vein that usually disappear
  • Groups of fine, red blood vessels around the treated vein that usually disappear.
     
The treated spider vein can also become inflamed or develop lumps of clotted blood. This is not dangerous. Applying heat and taking aspirin or antibiotics can relieve inflammation. Lumps of coagulated blood can be drained.
 
(Get Rid of Spider Veins Continued: Page 2)
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Written by/reviewed by: Arthur Schoenstadt, MD
Last reviewed by: Arthur Schoenstadt, MD