These tiny red or purple lines beneath the skin indicate that blood within affected veins is not moving sufficiently. Some of the reasons a person may develop spider veins include estrogen medications, pregnancy, genetic factors, injury, or prolonged standing or sitting on a regular basis. Women who are significantly overweight are at an increased risk for spider veins.
Though not a medical concern, spider veins can be treated should they create uncomfortable situations. You should not feel as though you want to hide your legs. Instead, a visit to the Lupo Center can lead to the effective non-surgical treatment of spider veins, and a return to full confidence. In our office, patients may undergo Sclerotherapy, a minimally-invasive treatment that has been used to reduce the appearance of spider veins since the 1930s.
Sclerotherapy has been proven extremely successful in treating uncomplicated spider and reticular veins. In a precise procedure, a highly trained physician injects a solution into affected veins, leading to their closure and disappearance over time.
Spider veins are very fine, and may be found on the lower extremities or on the face. Small or large areas may be covered in these veins. Reticular veins are enlarged veins that appear blue or green beneath the surface of the skin. These veins are the result of too much pressure in the affected vein.
Sclerotherapy at the Lupo Center for Aesthetic and General Dermatology
What is Sclerotherapy?
Here at the Lupo Center, I have been performing sclerotherapy since 1984.
It is a wonderful procedure ever made and remains the treatment of choice for dilated leg veins. We can use lasers, but studies show, sclerotherapy is more effective and more cost-effective than laser treatment.
In addition, sclerotherapy is less painful than laser treatments for leg veins.
How does the treatment work?
Sclerotherapy is the introduction of a solution directly into the tiny blood vessel, which causes damage to the cells inside the blood vessel called the endothelial cells.
Over time, damage to the cell causes the entire vessel to be destroyed and is gradually absorbed into the body, and you no longer see it.
The way sclerotherapy works is that the solution pushes the blood out of the vessel, and when it is adjacent to the endothelial cells, it damages those cells, and over time, scar tissue replaces them.
Are results immediate with Sclerotherapy?
You will immediately see a fading of the blood vessel with the injection, but the blood vessel comes back is a little inflamed, and over several weeks the vein will gradually disappear.
Sclerotherapy is virtually painless because the solutions we use now are FDA-approved, and at the Lupo Center, we try to do everything to make the experience of the patient as pleasant as possible, so we use the smallest caliber needles.
Is there any post-treatment care?
Patients do need to know that they will require compression stockings after the treatment for maximum benefit.
The compression stockings compress the vessel, allowing it to be destroyed more rapidly.
In addition, it helps prevent excessive inflammation and causing any tenderness of the area after the treatment.
So sclerotherapy remains the most effective and cost-effective treatment at the Lupo Center using the FDA-approved product called Asclera®.
Here at the Lupo Center, I have been performing sclerotherapy since 1984.
It is a wonderful procedure ever made and remains the treatment of choice for dilated leg veins. We can use lasers, but studies show, sclerotherapy is more effective and more cost-effective than laser treatment.
In addition, sclerotherapy is less painful than laser treatments for leg veins.
How does the treatment work?
Sclerotherapy is the introduction of a solution directly into the tiny blood vessel, which causes damage to the cells inside the blood vessel called the endothelial cells.
Over time, damage to the cell causes the entire vessel to be destroyed and is gradually absorbed into the body, and you no longer see it.
The way sclerotherapy works is that the solution pushes the blood out of the vessel, and when it is adjacent to the endothelial cells, it damages those cells, and over time, scar tissue replaces them.
Are results immediate with Sclerotherapy?
You will immediately see a fading of the blood vessel with the injection, but the blood vessel comes back is a little inflamed, and over several weeks the vein will gradually disappear.
Sclerotherapy is virtually painless because the solutions we use now are FDA-approved, and at the Lupo Center, we try to do everything to make the experience of the patient as pleasant as possible, so we use the smallest caliber needles.
Is there any post-treatment care?
Patients do need to know that they will require compression stockings after the treatment for maximum benefit.
The compression stockings compress the vessel, allowing it to be destroyed more rapidly.
In addition, it helps prevent excessive inflammation and causing any tenderness of the area after the treatment.
So sclerotherapy remains the most effective and cost-effective treatment at the Lupo Center using the FDA-approved product called Asclera®.
Sclerotherapy is a treatment that typically takes from 15 to 45 minutes to complete. The length of treatment will depend on how many veins require treatment. Dr. Lupo discusses the details of treatment, including estimated time for completion, during a one on one consultation.
Follow up to sclerotherapy includes wearing support hose or compression stockings continuously for about three days. After the third day, stockings may be worn during the day.
Dr. Lupo has been successfully performing sclerotherapy for many years. She views this as a safe, effective procedure for anyone who desires to eliminate unwanted spider veins.
Contact Lupo Center for Aesthetic and General Dermatology to get rid of unsightly veins.
