5 Benefits of Choosing Sclerotherapy

Sclerotherapy has become a popular method of treating spider veins and medium-sized varicose veins.  While there are a number of treatment options on the market, sclerotherapy offers a number of unique benefits which make it ideal for many situations.  This process involves injecting a sclerosing agent into the specific vein using a very fine needle.  This will then irritated the lining of the vein forcing it to swell shut and then collapse.  Your body will then reroute the blood through healthier veins.  If you are still considering which procedure is right for you, then consider these five benefits of choosing sclerotherapy, as presented by Houston plastic surgeon Dr. Mark Schusterman.

1.  Excellent Long Term Results

The biggest benefit of choosing sclerotherapy to treat spider veins is that it provides long-term results.  Other methods such as using topical creams or compression stockings may offer short term relief, however they need to be used on a daily basis in order to achieve sustained results.  With sclerotherapy, once the vein contracts and collapses, it will rarely reactivate.  As a result, you will not have to retreat the same area again.

2.  Minimally Invasive

The only other option which provides the same level of consistent results as sclerotherapy is surgery.  Compared to surgery, sclerotherapy is minimally invasive.  All it involves is a quick injection with the sclerosing agent.  When looking for long term results, it is actually the least invasive option available.  Additionally, since it does not require any incisions or anesthetics, there is an extremely low risk of complications, which is not the case with surgery.

3.  Minimum Time Requirement

A normal sclerotherapy session can be completed within 15 to 30 minutes.  Plus, you can immediately resume your daily activities once it has been finished.  In total, sclerotherapy may have the lowest time requirement of any spider vein treatment.  Surgery will not only take hours, but the downtime can be extensive following the procedure.  With short-term solutions, you will need to utilize them on a daily bases, such as applying topical creams and ointments, which adds up to a lot of time over a period of weeks.

4.  Minimal Risk of Side Effects

Another benefit of sclerotherapy is the low risk of side effects.  The primary cause of side effects is an allergic reaction to the sclerosing agent.  Fortunately, if you are utilizing a board-certified physician this issue will be discussed and taking care of prior to the procedure.  Other potential side effects are short-term such as bruising or redness surrounding the injection point.

5.  Least Expensive

While sclerotherapy may not be the least expensive option up front, once you consider the long-term costs of other treatments it becomes the most economical.  Paying for topical creams quickly becomes expensive, especially considering you will go through a tube every 7 to 14 days.  This makes sclerotherapy a less expensive option over the course of a year, let alone your entire life.  Sclerotherapy is also significantly less expensive than surgery.

With the growing number of spider vein treatments available, sclerotherapy may not be the perfect solution for everyone.  At the same time, it delivers an extremely high-level of results while requiring a minimal time commitment, low risk of side effects, and low overall price tag.