More than half of all adults will start to develop telangiectasia (spider veins) at some point in their life. These dilated capillaries will take on a reddish, purplish or blueish appearance. The best treatment we can provide for clients in New York with spider veins is a procedure known as sclerotherapy.
Spider Veins Are Easy to Treat with Sclerotherapy
Sclerotherapy is a non-surgical and minimally invasive treatment that takes just a short time in our Manhattan clinic. It’s an outpatient procedure that takes just a short amount of time (15 to 30 minutes, depending on how many veins are treated). Best of all, it treats both the cosmetic and health aspects of spider veins.
How Sclerotherapy Works
Your vein doctor in Manhattan will inject a chemical solution called a sclerosant directly into any spider veins located close to the surface of the skin. The chemicals cause the spider veins to close up, so they can be reabsorbed by the body. As those veins close up, blood will be redirected to healthier veins in your system.
The discoloration from the spider veins will also fade away within a period of several weeks after the procedure. Success rate for treatment of spider veins with sclerotherapy is close to 90 percent in all patients.
Does Sclerotherapy Hurt?
The procedure itself feels like you are getting a shot, as it requires the sclerosant to be injected directly into the spider veins. The procedure is non-surgical, so you will not require any stitches or long-term care. You’ll leave our Manhattan clinic with a bandage on the injection site, but that’s about the extent of the procedure itself.
As the sclerosant itself does its work of eliminating the spider veins, you won’t feel it. Some patients do experience side effects, which are possible with any injection. These can include:
- Bruising or reddening at the injection site
- Rash at the injection site
- Dark spots or lines in the skin (reaction to the sclerosant inside the vein)
- Appearance of new, red blood vessels
All of these side effects tend to go away on their own within a couple of days after treatment. We will also discuss any after-care and short-term lifestyle changes that you will need to make, to ensure that the treatment is a success. This can include things like wearing compression stockings for a few weeks, and avoiding hot baths or showers for the first day after your sclerotherapy treatment.
Will It Remove My Spider Veins Permanently?
Once a spider vein has been successfully removed with sclerotherapy, that particular vein is gone for good. However, this does not mean that a patient will not develop new spider veins at some point in the future.
One really good piece of news is that removing spider veins makes your circulatory system healthier. By removing spider veins, which are unhealthy, and diverting the blood flow to healthier veins, you have reduced the risk of developing more serious vein disease in the future.
Finding Vein Treatment in Manhattan, New York
If you’re ready to seek an easy and safe treatment for your spider veins, schedule an appointment today so you can meet our vein physicians in Manhattan, NY.