Spider Vein Treatment Options

As we grow older, many of us tend to notice small clusters of red, blue or purple veins on our thighs, calves and ankles. These unsightly problems, known as spider veins, are caused by a number of factors, including heredity and pregnancy. Just the sight of them would make us want to cover our legs and become very self-conscious when going out to public places like the beach. Not only can this make legs appear unattractive, bothersome symptoms such as aching, burning, swelling and night cramps are associated with these spider veins.

Spider vein removal, or sclerotherapy, is a procedure designed to permanently remove these spider veins, leaving your legs looking younger and healthier. This involves either delivering intense pulsed light to the veins, or through injections of a sclerosing solution that collapses these veins and causes them to fade away.

Even though spider vein removal has been performed for many years in Europe, only recently has this procedure gained popularity in the United States, becoming quite a trend in cosmetic surgery. In 2003, according to the American Society of Plastic Surgeons, over 480,000 spider vein removal procedures were performed in the United States alone.

With the increasing popularity of various cosmetic surgery procedures, including spider vein removal, it is important that the prospective patient research and understand different issues like what the procedure can and cannot treat, inherent risks, costs, and other factors. Keep in mind, cosmetic surgery is just that – a surgical procedure whose results cannot simply be erased.

Source: http://www.cosmeticsurgery.com/research/cosmetic-surgery/Spider-Vein-Treatment/#6