Vein Treatments

Non-Surgical Treatment

Guidelines for reducing some effects of varicose veins:

• Raise your legs whenever possible with your feet above the level of your heart.
• Exercise every day. Walking, cycling, climbing stairs and swimming are excellent ways to keep your calf muscles in motion.
• When sitting for prolonged periods, move your legs frequently. moving your ankles and flexing calf muscles will help keep blood moving in your legs. Avoid sitting for extended periods.
• Wear compression stockings. Graduated compression provides external pressure (like the valves in the veins) to aid in blood return to the heart. Compression stockings provide an effective non-operative option for symptom control. Compression is required for most vein surgery recovery.

Cosmetic Treatment

Before cosmetic treatment can begin, a complete medical evaluation is performed to ensure that underlying conditions are treated, thereby enhancing cosmetic results.

Sclerotherapy remains the "gold standard" in the treatment of telangiectasias or spider veins. Spider veins are tiny veins, visible through the skin. This technique involves injecting a sclerosing agent into a small varicose vein or spider veins. The sclerosing agent irritates the wall of the abnormal vessel, causing it to collapse and seal off.

Surgical Treatments

Minimally Invasive Treatments

• EVLT (Endoluminal Ablation) - this procedure uses laser technology to internally close off large veins that have valve abnormalities. These larger veins may be supplying blood flow to other varicose veins in the leg. EVLT does not remove large vein clusters or treat spider veins. Additional procedures like that provided by the Trivex system may be needed to remove remaining vein clusters.
• Trivex System. Transilluminated Powered Phlebectomy is a reliable minimally invasive approach to vein removal. This procedure is performed in the operating room, under general anesthesia. The TriVex system requires few small incisions, and is a more complete approach to vein cluster removal. The surgeon passes a light source through a small incision, allowing visualization of the veins. A scoping device is passed through a second small incision, which actually removes the abnormal vein. Patients are discharged the same day with a brief recovery period.

Surgical Vein Removal

• Ambulatory Phlebectomy. This procedure may be used to remove varicose veins that are too large for sclerotherapy but too small for the TriVex system. It involves vein removal through tiny incisions. It is often used in conjunction with sclerotherapy to reduce the pressure in the smaller spider veins for a more pleasing cosmetic outcome.
• Vein Ligation and Stripping. This procedure is performed in the operating room. It involves tying off the affected vein through small incisions and then stripping the vein from the leg. This technique is typically used for removal of the saphenous vein from the leg. Patients are discharged the same day with a brief recovery period.
• Subfascial Endoscopic Perforator Surgery (SEPS). Minimally invasive endoscopic approach for ligation ("clipping") of abnormal perforator veins underneath the muscle fascia in the legs. This is done by making small incisions in the calf region for placement of the scope. Sutures are placed under the skin so scarring is minimal. Recovery time is minimal as well.