Spider Vein Treatment and Varicose Vein Treatment in the Pittsburg, PA Area
If those little blue veins stretching through your skin or lumpy veins on your legs affect your self-esteem, Cosmetic Laser Centers is here to tell you that you do not have to suffer silently. We can help you with getting rid of your spider veins or varicose veins, so you can feel confident enough to wear shorts, skirts, and dresses this summer.
There are key differences between spider veins and varicose veins, as well as different treatment options you can pursue. Let’s explore what makes these veins appear on our bodies, and what you can do to stop them.
What are Spider Veins?
Spider veins are small, damaged veins that appear on your legs or face. They look like purple, blue, or red lines just below the surface of the skin. They sometimes look like webs when there are several concentrated in one small area. Spider veins are harmless and don’t normally cause any pain.
Spider veins in the legs are caused when valves inside the veins stop working, and blood stops flowing in the right direction. Blood pools inside the veins, which shows through your skin.
Facial spider veins are usually caused when tiny blood vessels burst. Sun damage is a key factor in the development of facial spider veins, even in non-tropical places like Cranberry Township, Pennsylvania.
Spider Vein Treatments
Due to the simple nature of spider veins, there are several options for treatment and removal, and some don’t require medical intervention. However, treatment procedures at Cosmetic Laser Centers will get you results quickly.
The first line of treatment for spider veins on the legs is to wear support stockings. Support stockings are designed to ease spider vein symptoms and slow or prevent their development. Most surgical supply stores or drug stores carry them in all different lengths, including pantyhose styles. These garments provide consistent, allover pressure on your legs, which helps blood move efficiently.
Making changes to your lifestyle can also help improve the look of spider veins. Good skin hygiene, losing weight if needed, and going on walks or doing other exercise can help prevent the development of these unsightly veins. Cosmetic Laser Centers can help you improve your skin hygiene, but if you already have extensive spider veins on your legs or face, lifestyle changes probably will not be enough to fully correct them.
If you’re looking for more permanent fixes for spider vein treatment, you should make an appointment at our practice, where we have several options for facial spider vein treatment and for spider veins on your legs.
The most common treatment for spider veins that we offer is called sclerotherapy. This procedure has been around for more than eight decades, so it is a safe and trusted method for spider vein removal. In sclerotherapy, tiny needles inject a solution into your visible spider veins. This solution collapses the blood vessel before the body eventually reabsorbs them and makes them disappear.
Most patients report minimal discomfort during sclerotherapy treatment and the length of the procedure depends on how many areas of your legs require treatment, but typically they take about a half an hour. Your results will be apparent several weeks post-treatment, and you can get back to your daily life with minimal downtime or recovery.
For facial spider vein treatment, Cosmetic Laser Centers uses light and lasers to reduce the appearance of these veins. Using thermal energy, the laser devices cause the spider veins to spasm and close, before the body reabsorbs them.
We offer two devices to remove your spider veins: IPL® M22™ and Fraxel® laser resurfacing. Both require multiple treatments, spaced apart by a few weeks. Downtime is minimal afterward, but avoiding sun and tanning beds before and after treatments is very important to the success of the procedure and the health of your skin.
Our spider vein treatment experts at Cosmetic Laser Centers can help you determine which laser treatment is right for you. The type of laser we use depends on the level of treatment your skin needs and the amount of recovery and aftercare you are comfortable with undergoing.
What are Varicose Veins?
Although both spider veins and varicose veins indicate a medical condition called venous insufficiency, varicose veins have very different symptoms.
Like with spider veins, the valves inside the vein don’t work properly, which causes blood to pool. Superficial veins, like those close to the top layer of your skin, get less support from surrounding muscles than veins deeper in your body. With more muscle support, veins are less likely to become varicose.
Varicose veins bulge and twist just under the skin’s surface, and are usually flesh-colored or sometimes reddened. They come with a host of symptoms like pain, itching, and swelling in the lower legs, but some people have no other symptoms.
They also can increase risk of blood clots and circulation problems, but are generally benign. Varicose veins are very common; 23% of all Americans have them. Women are twice as likely as men to develop them.
Varicose Veins Treatments
Like spider veins, varicose veins can benefit from compression stockings. Depending on the type and brand you purchase, the amount of compression will vary, so check with your doctor or other vein specialist at the Vein Institute of Pittsburgh to determine which will be best for you. Exercise, losing weight, and keeping your legs elevated also can help ease the pain and aches from varicose veins and prevent them from getting worse. If these simple changes aren’t effective for you, there are other treatment options available for relief from varicose veins.
If your varicose veins are relatively small, sclerotherapy may help. Like with spider veins, this treatment has almost no downtime and does not require anesthesia. Sclerotherapy can sometimes be effective for larger varicose veins, but you will need to talk to one of our medical providers to determine whether this treatment will help you. Laser treatment can also be used for smaller varicose veins.
Endovenous Laser Ablation, also called EVLA or EVLT, is a minimally invasive treatment that uses laser heat energy to seal varicose veins shut. Instead of undergoing a surgical procedure called “stripping,” EVLA gets the job done to treat superficial venous insufficiency and the varicose veins it creates.
Less superficial varicose veins can be removed through microphlebectomy. This procedure requires the use of a local anesthetic before removing veins through needle punctures in the skin. Microphlebectomy is an in-office, outpatient procedure and is sometimes combined with EVLA for maximum effectiveness.
Because Cosmetic Laser Centers does not treat varicose veins, you can learn more about them from our partner, Vein Institute of Pittsburgh.
Call Us for Spider Vein Removal
Cosmetic Laser Centers, located in Pittsburgh, PA, and serving surrounding areas like Wexford, PA, can help you get rid of your spider veins or find treatment for your varicose veins. You don’t have to live with them or struggle to cover them up with makeup. Contact us today at 724-935-4200 to get started.