Do you ever wear jeans when it is hot outside because you are self-conscious about spider or varicose veins in your legs? If so, you’re not alone. Luckily, there is a non-surgical solution for these noticeable veins. At North Texas Fibroids in Flower Mound, TX, we offer sclerotherapy, a safe, effective way to eliminate disordered veins. Today, our experts are discussing how many sessions you will need to achieve your desired results. Keep reading to learn more.
How Many Sessions of Sclerotherapy Are Typically Needed?
Most people only need one or two sclerotherapy sessions to achieve their desired results. However, the severity of your concerns, the locations of the disordered veins, and the size and number of the disordered veins will affect how many sessions you will need.
Minor Concerns
If you are concerned about spider veins or only have a few varicose veins that are just beginning to twist, you should only need one sclerotherapy session.
Moderate Concerns
If you have severely disordered varicose veins or disordered veins in several regions of your body, you may need two treatment sessions.
Frequently Asked Questions
How Does Sclerotherapy Work?
Sclerotherapy is a non-surgical disordered vein treatment that works due to a sclerosant solution. This solution comprises saline (sterile salt water) and an irritant. When this solution is injected into the wall of the disordered vein, the disordered venous wall becomes severely irritated. Over time, it collapses and starves. Eventually, surrounding tissues absorb the destroyed vein.
How Quickly Can You See the Results of This Treatment?
You can expect to see the results of your disordered vein treatment within roughly four to six weeks of your session. You should expect to experience relief from most of your symptoms, such as itchiness, redness, pain, heaviness, discomfort, swelling, and bruising, very shortly after your treatment is over. That said, mildly disordered veins take around a month to be absorbed by the surrounding tissues. Additionally, larger veins may take six to eight weeks to be absorbed fully.
How Long Do the Results of This Treatment Last?
The results of this treatment are permanent. Once the irritated vein has collapsed, it will never open up again. They are absorbed by surrounding tissues and cannot become spider or varicose veins in the future.
With that being said, it is possible for veins that are currently healthy to become varicose or spider veins in the future. Extenuating factors, such as your weight, activity level, and diet, can lead to the development of vascular deformities in veins that are not currently disordered. If you develop more disordered veins in the future, you may receive additional sclerosant therapy sessions.
Are Disordered Veins Common?
Yes, disordered veins are common in both men and women. However, vascular disorders are far more common in women than men. Approximately 25% of women develop spider or varicose veins.
The Relationship Between Hormones and Varicose Veins
Varicose veins are more common in women than men due to the extreme hormone level fluctuations women experience. For example, many women become pregnant and develop disordered veins in the lower legs due to the increased hormone levels telling the stomach to store extra fat. This extra fat results in excess pressure placed on the veins in the lower legs. Additionally, hormone fluctuations during pregnancy result in extra blood circulating throughout the body.
Sometimes, varicose veins occur in pregnant women due to excess venous blood pressure because there is too much blood circulating through the body for the veins to handle. Even women who never become pregnant are more likely to develop spider or varicose veins. This is because women experience greater hormone level fluctuations during perimenopause and menopause men experience as they age.
How Are Spider Veins Different From Varicose Veins?
Usually, healthy veins should not be visible to the naked eye. However, spider veins and varicose veins can be seen through the skin because excessive blood flow has caused significant swelling. While these disordered veins are similar, there are numerous differences. The primary differences between these two types of disordered veins are the size and appearance of the veins.
Spider veins are small damaged veins that look akin to tree roots or spider webs. These small veins are usually no larger than a silver dollar but may be as small as a penny. Spider veins often look purple or red and most commonly appear in areas with thin skin, such as the nose and the ankles. In contrast, varicose veins are usually green or dark blue and much larger than spider veins. These veins appear commonly in the calves.
What Causes Spider Veins?
Spider veins become visible through the skin after a prolonged period of blood pooling in weak veins. Eventually, this chronic blood pooling stresses the venous walls to the point they become turgid and visible. This prolonged blood pooling is most commonly caused by an underlying medical condition, such as cardiovascular disease.
Other factors that may cause spider veins include a sedentary lifestyle, pregnancy, age, obesity, and genetics. Notably, rosacea is commonly associated with spider veins, appearing most commonly on the face. This condition causes severe inflammation and can make your face flush. Often, rosacea is caused by spider veins. If you have rosacea caused by swollen veins, sclerotherapy may reduce the frequency and severity of your rosacea outbreaks.
What Causes Varicose Veins?
The causes for varicose veins are similar to the causes for spider veins. Here are some examples:
Activity Level
Several lifestyle choices can lead to the development of varicose veins. One of the most prevalent lifestyle choices that may lead to varicose veins is your activity level. Most people think of a sedentary individual as someone who sits all day. However, standing in one place all day is just as bad for your cardiovascular health.
If you must stand in one place for several hours of time at work, make sure you are exercising at a moderate intensity for at least 2.5 hours weekly. If you work in an office, you should make a point to take regular breaks from sitting, walking to the break room or a coworker’s desk. If you need to be at your desk to answer your phone, you should do calisthenics at your desk briefly.
Alcohol Consumption
Alcohol consumption can also lead to varicose veins. Alcohol is a vasodilator. Therefore, drastic pressure changes stress your venous walls significantly as your veins shrink and expand in response to alcohol consumption. The consumption of alcohol most commonly leads to disordered veins and broken capillaries in the facial region, especially the nose.
Genes
Your genes may also increase your risk of developing varicose veins, particularly in women. If you have an immediate blood relative, like a sister or mom, who has been diagnosed with varicose veins, you are much more likely to develop varicose veins yourself. Since you can’t change your genes, you need to consider your other lifestyle choices carefully.
Do your best to make lifestyle choices that mitigate your risk of developing future varicose veins. Also, you should know while most people develop varicose veins later in life, women with blood relatives who have developed varicose veins may develop these veins themselves in their 20s or 30s.
Obesity
If you are overweight or obese, you are at a very high risk of developing varicose veins. Obesity affects your body in many ways, including overtaxing the vascular system. The more stressed the vascular system is, the more likely the venous walls in your lower legs are to be damaged.
Can Spider Veins and Varicose Veins Be Prevented?
It is possible to mitigate the risk of developing disordered veins. For example, you can maintain a weight that is ideal for your height, get regular aerobic exercise and elevate your legs above your heart when you sleep. If you have no choice but to sit or stand for prolonged periods, you should strongly consider wearing prescription-strength compression stockings to help blood flow from your lower extremities back to your heart.
Is This Treatment Safe?
Yes, sclerotherapy has been used safely and effectively for many years.
How Should This Treatment Be Prepared for?
It is incredibly simple to prepare for your injectable sclerosant treatment. Among the things you should do in the week leading up to your treatment are:
- Discontinuing the use of NSAIDs
- Discontinuing the use of blood-thinning supplements
Additionally, on the day of your treatment, you should wear comfortable clothes. If you are having your lower legs treated, we recommend wearing shorts. Furthermore, you should avoid shaving the treatment area or wearing lotion or other cosmetics.
How Long Does Recovery Take?
Very little recovery follows this non-invasive treatment. Once your injection session is complete, you should refrain from vigorous exercise for three to five days. Once you are feeling up to it, you may return to your regular workout routine. Notably, if you have a sedentary job, you may return to work as soon as your session is complete and we review your post-treatment care instructions with you.
What Post-Treatment Care Instructions Are Advised?
To ensure the best possible treatment results, there are a number of guidelines you should adhere to after your injection session. For example, you should avoid excessive heat by refraining from exercising at an intensity that would make you sweat, and staying out of steam rooms, dry saunas and hot tubs.
You should also avoid taking any drugs or supplements, like NSAIDs or vitamin E, that will thin your blood. Furthermore, it is advisable to walk regularly to get your blood flowing and wear compression stockings to support your circulatory system.
When Is the Best Time To Get This Treatment?
The best time to get this treatment is when you are experiencing the symptoms of varicose veins or spider veins. If you are considering this treatment because you want to look your best for a special event, we recommend scheduling your session at least eight to 12 weeks before your major event. Remember, if you have very large, severely gnarled varicose veins, two sessions may be required to achieve satisfactory results.
Schedule Your Initial Evaluation Today
Typically, people only need one or two treatment sessions to treat all of their spider or varicose veins. If you have spider veins or small varicose veins, you should only need one session to treat your disordered veins. On the other hand, three sessions may be required if you have several large, deep varicose veins or varicose veins in several regions of your body. Contact us now at North Texas Fibroids in Flower Mound, TX to schedule your initial evaluation and find out if this treatment is right for you.
