Spider Vein Treatments: How to Get the Best Results
Varicose veins are incredibly common, but that doesn’t mean you have to live with them if you don’t want to. If you’re considering treatments to reduce the appearance of your spider veins, here are a few tips to help you get the best results.
What Causes Spider Veins?
Spider veins, or varicose veins, commonly occur during pregnancy. Too much pressure on the walls of veins in the legs can cause their walls to collapse, which in turn causes spider veins. Similar to pregnancy acne treatment, some spider veins will only be an issue during pregnancy. However, they can stick around afterwards with no signs of improvement. If you’re in this boat, you’re probably seeking out treatment options. Let’s get into how you can ensure the best possible results.
Consult With Your Doctor
A consultation with your doctor before you undergo any treatment for spider veins is one of the best ways to ensure you get excellent results. During a consultation, your doctor will evaluate the affected veins and take a medical history. If you have any allergies, existing medical conditions, or previously unsuccessful attempts at spider vein treatment, your doctor will take that into consideration before proceeding with instructions to help you prepare for your treatment. Depending on the veins you want treated, your doctor may also request an ultrasound. This will provide a better image of what the walls of the affected veins look like and may inform your doctor as to which treatment will be best suited to your needs.
Avoid Shaving
Before your spider vein treatment, your doctor will likely ask you to do several things in preparation. One of them is to avoid shaving for at least a few days before your procedure. Regardless of the treatment method, any skin rash or other skin irritation at the treatment site before your procedure could have a negative impact on your results. Not only that, but too much skin irritation or a dry skin rash could mean you need to postpone your procedure until your skin has calmed down.
Avoid Certain Medications
As with almost any medical procedure, you’ll likely be asked to avoid taking certain medications for a short period of time before your procedure. Such medications will typically include aspirin, anti-inflammatory drugs, and herbal supplements. The reasoning behind this is that a number of these substances can increase bleeding, which could negatively impact your treatment results.
Be Prepared to Invest in Multiple Sessions
This is perhaps the most important thing you can do to ensure you get the best spider vein treatment results possible. While it would be great to have one treatment session and be done, the truth is the best results often come after multiple treatment sessions. This is also the best way to avoid major skin irritation. Treatment sessions that go for a long time or are too close together may have adverse side effects that last longer than they would at your doctor’s recommended pace for treatment.
Treatment for varicose veins can be tough to get right, but that’s why we’re here to help. If you’re looking for ways to get the best results from your spider vein treatments, don’t hesitate to make an appointment to talk with someone on our staff at North Pacific Dermatology today.