Laser treatment of thread veins
Thread veins are small dilated vessels in or just under the
skin. They are also known as spider veins, spider naevi, venous or
varicose naevi.
Thread veins can vary in size from 1mm to 6mm in diameter and in
colour from a pale pink through red to dark blue. They range from
being almost invisible to being extremely disfiguring.
We can treat thread veins with:
• electrolysis
• injection sclerotherapy
• laser light
Electrolysis and injection sclerotherapy have a varying response
and injections normally mean wearing a tight bandage for a few days
after treatment.
Laser treatment relies on the absorption of laser light in the
vein but not the surrounding normal tissue. The vein will then
coagulate with little or no damage to surrounding tissue.
Clinical research into laser treatment of thread veins has been
taking place for the last 25 years. The London Clinic has recently
acquired a third-generation pulsed laser for this purpose. It is
capable of treating all thread veins, from the very small pink
threads to dark blue ones up to 3mm in diameter.
The results from the use of this laser are better than those
seen from previous lasers as well as other treatment methods which
is beneficial to patients concerned about the appearance of their
legs.
Information provided by Dr Frank
Cross MS FRCS, Consultant Vascular Surgeon and Associate Editor
of “Lasers in Medical Science”