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What are Thread and Spider Veins and how we treat them.
Thread and spider veins are two names for the same thing and appear as fine red veins usually less than 1mm diameter, near the skin surface.
Thread veins on the legs, usually have an underlying cause similar to varicose veins and can progress to become varicose veins.
If there are just one or two very fine veins (less than 0.3mm diameter) then treating these may be a reasonable approach but if there are numerous veins or any visible veins over 0.5mm diameter or blue in appearance, you will probably be wasting your time and money.
When treating veins on the legs it is important to assess the feeder vein/s. These may need to be treated by sclerotherapy. An ultrasound scan will be advised to better understand the underlying cause. Please see Varicose Vein treatment for further information.
Once the underlying cause has been established and if necessary dealt with, the remaining veins can be mopped up using a very fine 980nm laser beam.
Thread veins on the face tend to be fewer , finer and easier to treat although for instance rosacea can result in a network of very fine veins called telangiectasia matting and these are often more suited to Intense Pulsed Light treatment (IPL).
Both 980nm laser and IPL have advantages compared to other treatments such as ThermaveinTM
- They are non-invasive and do not cause bleeding.
- More comfortable treatments
- Faster treatments
- Cosmex Clinic is a full member of the British Medical Laser Association.
- An additional benefit of IPL is that it is also an effective anti-ageing skin treatment.
Spectra Vein Laser Treatment of Thread Veins.
Spectra Vein is a specialist laser that represents a major step forward in the treatment of thread veins. It is fast and generally well tolerated. It is also totally non invasive with fewer risks than other earlier treatments. The treatments are permanent although if you are predisposed towards developing thread veins it is likely that more will eventually develop.
The Spectra Vein uses an ultra fine beam of a specially selected wavelength of infra red light that is absorbed preferentially by the blood in the target vein. Fine veins can usually be treated in one session and the finer veins will often appear to disappear immediately.
Larger veins will turn a deeper red and be absorbed by your body over the next few weeks. Larger veins may also need more than one treatment.
Thread vein removal when the veins appear as a network (mat) of fine veins
Intense Pulsed Light (IPL)
IPL works very well when treating fine vascular networks or matting. This type of vascular matting is typically present on the face and is often associated with certain types of rosacea or outdoor working. The veins are typically very fine and numerous. The advantage of IPL is that its large head can easily treat many fine veins in a single pulse, which would be impractical using the Spectra Vein or Thermavein(TM).
It is a common treatment used to treat a range of different indications and with the latest cooled sapphire tipped treatment head, it is now generally an easily tolerated and importantly, a fast treatment.
The treatment of Varicose Veins – really no need to be concerned
The old method of stripping out the varicose veins sounds like a form of torture and patients were understandably concerned about the effects and discomfort. Fortunately, technology and medicine have evolved in leaps and bounds in recent years so that providing you act promptly the need for that type of intervention can be virtually eliminated.
The current approach ideally fits the clinic’s ethos of prevention and early intervention using minimally invasive procedures for maximum benefit with least patient discomfort.