As with most other problems, prevention is always easier than treatment. Hence pay close attention to risk factors like age, heredity, as well as hormone levels. There may not be much that you can do in case you are predisposed to spider veins, but you can minimize those behaviours that assist in their development. Try to avoid work which consistently keeps you standing on your feet, or lifting heavy objects, especially if you notice any signs of developing spider and/or varicose veins.
Spider Vein
In case of facial spider veins, always make sure that you avoid long instances of exposure to the sun. Avoid irritating your skin as well as treat any inflammation immediately.
Different Spider Vein Treatments
Vitamin K cream
This is the most common so-called treatment of spider veins. Despite its prevalence, it appears to do little in order to reduce the appearance of spider veins. Vitamin K is used as a clotting agent but as Spider Veins are enlarged rather than ruptured, thus there’s actually no clotting.
Oral or Topical Vessel Strengtheners
Consider a topical or oral vessel strengthening agent, as by strengthening vessels, you can prevent or even reduce spider veins. The basic problem with vessel strengtheners is that there is not enough research done to know what, if any, effectiveness they have on spider veins; whether they’re more effective topically or orally; besides what their optimal dose is. Still, there is evidence that some agents may have other skin and health benefits, which for many people is reason enough to try them.
For well-developed spider veins, there is little that can be done with topical or oral treatments. In such a case, a person must decide if having unsightly but harmless spider veins is really worth the trouble of going for a more costly procedure.
Laser Removal
Certain people may wish to have their spider veins removed with a laser treatment, which is a scientifically sound as well as an effective way of removing spider veins. Once laser treatment is performed, the dilated vessels tend to fade and often completely disappear. Laser treatment is also good as it doesn’t require injections or incisions.
But some people don’t respond to treatment or respond only after several treatments. Besides, the results may not always be permanent; and there may be some tenderness and bruising to the affected area after treatment. Also, laser treatment is only effective on very small areas and is more effective on the facial spider veins rather than leg spider veins. It is not effective on large widespread areas where the capillaries fail to shrink or they can dilate again after a short time.
Sclerotherapy
This is a more radical therapy which is more effective on larger areas. It involves injecting a chemical agent into the vein in order to cause it to close. This type of procedure is often used for treating varicose veins as well as medium to large spider veins. In case it is used properly sclerotherapy works over 80% of the time.
There are few side effects of sclerotherapy, but theymay include an allergic reaction, ulceration, besides tissue death or prolonged discoloration of the skin in the treated area. Other minor side effects include bruising and itching, which go away after a short time.