Depending on the type and stage of vein disorders, there are different types of treatments. The Surrey Vein Clinic can explain the most appropriate treatment options to you at an initial consultation. The following are overviews of the most common treatments:
Compression Stockings
For minor pain from Varicose veins, a compression stocking may be beneficial. The compression stocking will assist the leg in pumping of blood back to the heart. While the discomfort felt by the sufferer may be reduced, compression stockings will not cure the problem.
Sclerotherapy
Used commonly for spider veins and small varicose veins on legs , also used for the treatment facial veins. Sclerotherapy involves injecting a small volume of a liquid into the affected vein. The sclerosing liquid acts upon the lining of the vein to cause it to seal shut, eliminating the vein completely. Sclerotherapy can be quickly performed at our clinic and no anaesthesia is required.
Surgical stripping
Historically, the only treatment for large varicose veins has been to surgically remove or ‘strip’ the vein from the body. Surgical stripping is done in an operating theatre under general or regional anaesthesia and may require a considerable recovery period for the patient. More recently, a modified version of stripping, known as ambulatory phlebectomy has grown in use. In this version of surgical stripping, multiple incisions are made to hook and remove the vein one portion at a time. More incisions are made than in standard vein stripping, but the damage to the leg and post-surgery recovery time are reduced.
Endovenous Laser Therapy
In the last few years, the use of lasers has become an accepted alternative to surgical stripping to treat varicose veins. In endovenous laser therapy, the patient only needs a local anaesthetic. A thin laser fibre is inserted into the diseased vein, generally through a small puncture around the knee. Laser energy is directed through the fibre which causes the vein to close as the fibre is gradually removed. Endovenous laser therapy can be performed in a clinic or surgery in less than one hour, and the patient is encouraged to walk immediately following the procedure.
Questions?
(Q) If the vein is closed by the treatment where does the blood go?
(A) Because there are many veins in the leg, the blood that would have flowed through the closed vein simply flows through other healthy veins after the procedure. The loss of the diseased vein is not a problem for the circulatory system.
(Q) What are the complications of vein treatment?
(A) Fortunately, sclerotherapy and endovenous laser therapy have rarely been associated with any serious complications when properly performed. Common minor complications of these procedures include bruising, mild itching, tingling, tenderness and tightness in the treated leg for up to two weeks after the treatment.