The laser ablation procedure is extremely well tolerated by almost all patients. There are a few needle sticks required to place the numbing medicine around the vein. After the numbing medicine is placed, the procedure is painless. We offer a light sedative if a patient is anxious prior to the procedure; however most patients do not take this medication.
The laser ablation procedure is performed in the office and typically takes less than 1 hour. It is exceptionally well tolerated thanks to recent gains in technology. At Artemis, we use ultrasound technology to identify the diseased vein. Once the vein has been located, a catheter is placed into the vein followed by a laser fiber. The laser fiber is activated and as it is withdrawn, the vein will clot which effectively closes down the vein and the problem leading to venous disease. After the laser ablation, we turn our attention to the varicose veins. After making micro incisions in the skin, we can remove small sections of the varicose veins to bring about a faster resolution of symptoms and improve appearance.
As with varicose veins, the cause of spider veins may stem from a deeper problem. The first step is to identify a potential problem in the larger veins of the legs. By using ultrasound we can locate a diseased vein. If the vein is problematic, we use state of the art laser fibers to ablate the diseased vein. After treating the culprit vein, we inject a medicine into the spider vein itself to bring about resolution. If there is no problem with a larger vein, we can still inject the medicine into the spider vein complex to help resolve the problem. Treating a spider vein by injecting a medicine is called sclerotherapy.
Since the cause of varicose veins stem from a deeper problem, the first step is to identify a problem in the larger veins of the legs. By using ultrasound we can locate a diseased vein. Once the vein has been identified as being problematic, we use state of the art laser fibers to ablate the diseased vein. After treating the culprit vein, we remove small sections of the bulging vein to improve symptoms as well as appearance.
Varicose and spider veins are the end result of long-term venous disease in the legs. Varicose veins manifest as large bulging veins while spider veins appear as a tiny vein just at the surface of the skin. Spider veins have a characteristic pattern that looks similar to a spider’s-web.