What are Leg Spider Veins and what is the best treatment?
If you have leg spider veins and you want treatment, you are in the right place. In
this video I will give you important facts about Leg Spider Veins and I will tell you
about Microsclerotherapy, the best injection treatment for leg spider veins and blue veins.
My name is Dr Haroun Gajraj, Director of The VeinCare Centre, helping you find freedom
from unsightly and uncomfortable veins as well as veins causing health problems. If
you are new here, make sure you click that subscribe button and all the links in the
video description box below.
So let’s get started. And stay to the end, where I will share with you a detailed resource
about “Everything you should know about Leg Spider Veins before having any treatment.”
Leg spider veins are unsightly vessels in the skin up to 1 mm in size. Also known as
thread veins or broken veins, the medical term for these veins is telangiectasia.
Doctors and nurses as well as the public often regard leg spider veins as just cosmetic,
trivial in nature and of no health consequence. For this reason, many people with leg spider
veins seek treatment in a cosmetic clinic or sometimes in a beauty salon.
But of course, vein specialists know that leg spider veins are never just cosmetic.Recent
research confirms the importance of identifying and treating the underlying cause of the spider
veins (feeder veins with incompetent valves) Treatment involves the injection of prescription
medicine into the veins For these reasons, people with leg spider
veins should be carefully assessed and have proper medical investigations before treatment
and the injection should be carried out by properly trained healthcare professionals
who are competent and who are regulated to prescribe medicines (doctors, nurses and independent
prescribers). What causes leg spider veins?
In my practice, the majority of people asking for advice or treatment are women. Of course,
men get them too, but because men have hairy legs and tend to wear trousers, spider veins
are of more concern to women than to men. Young women with no symptoms usually have
no underlying issues with the veins underneath the skin and in this situation, the spider
veins are said to be “idiopathic”. Women who have symptoms such as leg throbbing, swelling
or leg discomfort, may have underlying vein problems or even varicose veins. In this situation,
the spider veins are said to be “secondary”. This is an important point, because people
with idiopathic spider veins can have injection treatments pretty much straight away, whereas,
people with secondary spider veins are best advised to have a leg check up with an ultrasound
scan.
When are spider veins a problem? For most people, it is the unsightly appearance
of the spider veins that causes embarrassment, poor self-esteem and lack of confidence. This
is often the motivation for seeking help. For others, symptoms such as leg ache, throbbing
and swelling may cause concern. Spider Veins around the ankle
Spider veins around the ankle may indicate a major problem with the function of veins
below the skin and these spider veins should always be taken seriously. These veins are
called “Corona Phlebectatica” also known as ankle flares. So spider veins around the
ankle may actually be a health problem. Spider veins around the ankle may also indicate
that the skin is being damaged by a faulty vein circulation. In this situation, the skin
becomes thin and white and it is particularly vulnerable to injury and ulceration. In fact,
spider veins around the ankle (corona phlebectatica) in association with “atrophie blanche”
are warning signs of the risks of developing a leg ulcer.
How can Spider Veins be treated? People with no symptoms, no ankle flare or
varicose veins and no vein reflux can be treated by Micro-injections (Microsclerotherapy).
Microsclerotherapy involves the injection of a prescription medicine into the vein.
Microsclerotherapy is a very delicate injection procedure and requires skill and accuracy.
The prescription medicine is called a sclerosant. It works by removing the delicate lining of
the spider veins and a healing process starts which causes the vein to fade and disperse.
Leg spider veins are situated in the skin. They are 1 mm in size and because they are
located in the skin they are easily visible. Because no one likes the look of leg spider
veins, it is easy to forget that in nearly 90% of people with leg spider veins an underlying
deeper problem can be identified as the cause. Although it is tempting just to inject them
this is very rarely the right way to proceed. We now know that the spider veins in the skin
are connected to deeper veins. We also know that veins have delicate folds in the lining
which open and close to keep blood flowing in the correct direction. These delicate folds
are called valves. They are easily seen in the larger veins on ultrasound. However in
the smaller veins these valves cannot be easily detected. It has only been as a result of
detailed research over many years that we now understand that even small veins just
under the skin have these delicate folds and one-way valves. Because the vessels are so
small, they are called microvalves. The blood in the spider veins in the skin
drains into deeper veins called reticular veins. Under normal circumstances, these reticular
veins carry blood away from the spider veins. However if microvalves do not work properly,
there can be a back pressure of blood and this causes the spider veins to appear. In
this situation, the reticular veins become feeder veins.
If these feeder veins are not treated, then injecting the spider veins directly is either
likely to be ineffective or it can actually make the spider veins look worse.
What Tests are needed before Leg Spider Veins are treated?
Success when treating leg spider veins depends on careful patient selection. That means excluding
unsuitable patients based on health criteria, unsuitable types of leg spider veins based
on the causes and advising people who might be expecting “perfection.”
People suitable for Microsclerotherapy are selected after a history, examination special
tests such as Duplex Ultrasound, Near Infra-red Imaging, Cross-Polarised Photography and Transillumination.
What are the Results of Leg Spider Vein Treatment? Microsclerotherapy has been studied in several
large Randomised Controlled Trials and improvement of more than 90% is achieved at the end of
treatment. The European Guideline Group has recommended that liquid sclerotherapy is the
method of choice for the treatment of C1 telangiectasias and reticular veins.
Sclerotherapy depends on a healing process that takes time. The results are not instant.
What are the Risks of Leg Spider Vein Treatment? Serious complications such as Deep Vein Thrombosis
(DVT or clots), allergic reactions or infection are very rare (very much less than 1 in a
1,000 risk). Some pain or stinging may occur at the injection
sites and some patients experience restlessness in their legs during the first few nights.
For a month or so the veins may appear more prominent and the injection sites may occasionally
itch. Complications following Microsclerotherapy are very rare, but the solution can sometimes
escape from the veins and cause inflammation in the skin surrounding the area.
There is also a small risk of the development of tiny ulcers, which may leave a pink or
white scar on healing. After treatment there may be persistent veins
which are resistant to injections. The treatment may cause brown discolouration (lasting up
to 3 years) and, very rarely, the thread veins may be worse or new broken veins may appear.
Occasionally vision may be temporarily disturbed for a few minutes or hours after Microsclerotherapy.
In addition, the treatment may cause migraines. So, thank you for staying to the end. As promised,
If you would like to know more, visit the link in the description below which has everything
you need to know about leg spider veins. I look forward to seeing you in my next video.