Best Treatments for Varicose Veins

When you begin to notice that you’ve developed varicose veins, your first instinct may be to get them treated because they are unattractive or they are causing you discomfort. However, besides being unsightly, varicose veins are actually a warning sign of deeper problems within your venous system, so it is important to get them checked out and treated. Many people may be reluctant, because past methods of treatment were painful and invasive. But at Advanced Varicose Vein Treatments of Manhattan, we offer several minimally invasive options to address both the aesthetic and circulatory issues signaled by the appearance of varicose veins.

Endovenous Laser Treatment (EVLT)

Endovenous Laser Treatment (EVLT) involves nothing more than laser energy, a local anesthetic and less than an hour out of your day. When you choose EVLT, the area around the affected vein is numbed with a local anesthetic, and a small catheter (about the size of an IV needle) is inserted into the vein. A laser fiber is guided through the catheter into the varicose vein, and as the laser is slowly removed, it gives off heat energy, which damages the walls of the vein. This induces the vein walls to collapse, and the heat from the laser seals it closed. The blood flowing through that vein is naturally rerouted to a normal, healthy vein, and the now collapsed varicose vein is reabsorbed by body, eliminating it permanently.

EVLT offers a 98 percent success rate, as well as a very low risk for complications. There are no incisions, and therefore no scarring, and there is zero downtime required for recovery – in fact, you are encouraged to walk around immediately after your EVLT procedure to energize blood flow.

Sclerotherapy

Sclerotherapy is yet another nonsurgical procedure that takes very little time to perform and offers superior results. It is typically used to treat smaller varicose veins or spider veins, and simply involves the injection of a sclerosant (usually a saline solution) into the varicose vein. This medically approved sclerosant irritates the walls of the vein, which causes them to collapse and be reabsorbed into your body. The result is the elimination of unsightly damaged veins, using a treatment that requires no incisions, anesthesia or downtime, and only takes about 30 minutes. Compression stockings may be prescribed for a short time after the procedure, but overall you will see immediate and lasting results.

Ambulatory Phlebectomy

Ambulatory phlebectomy is considered a microsurgical procedure, because there are incisions used, however, they are very small and leave little to no evidence of scarring. It is typically used to treat larger varicose veins that are too small to treat using EVLT, but too large to successfully treat using sclerotherapy.

The procedure involves a series of small, precise incisions along the length of the problem vein. The vein is then carefully taken out in segments until it is completely removed. An ambulatory phlebectomy is minimally invasive, and is done using local anesthesia. No downtime is required, though you may wear a compression bandage and stockings initially to help minimize swelling and encourage faster healing. Though the treatment is effective alone, it can be combined with EVLT for best results.

If you have varicose veins that are causing you embarrassment and discomfort, it may be time to explore your treatment options at Advanced Varicose Vein Treatments of Manhattan. Call our office today at 212-204-6501 to schedule a consultation.