Varicose veins are easily treated with little discomfort and can be covered by insurance. Treating varicose veins in this way takes less than an hour and patients can leave the office with minimal scarring. Recovery time is usually a matter of hours or days, and any medication needed is usually just an over-the-counter pain reliever. Venous symptoms, such as pain, tenderness, or burning, go away quickly.
Treatments for spider veins are almost always considered cosmetic and are not covered by insurance, unless the spider vein has bled. It is best to check with your insurance company about coverage decisions. At our venous clinic in the Torre Universitaria, we offer a full range of treatments for venous diseases, such as leg swelling, spider veins, varicose veins, venous reflux and deep vein thrombosis. We have several advanced procedures available to you, depending on the severity and depth of your varicose veins.
Our team is one of the first in St. Louis to offer the VenaSeal closure System, which is a faster procedure with faster recovery after endovenous ablation. Varicose veins form when the valves inside the veins that help direct blood flow don't work properly. This can cause blood to accumulate in the vessels of the leg and cause the veins to enlarge.
If the problematic vein cannot be treated with sclerotherapy or EVLA, another option is ambulatory phlebectomy. During this procedure, several small incisions are made over a bulging vein and the vein is removed. Vein treatment can be performed by many types of doctors, including interventional radiologists and vascular surgeons. You'll want a board-certified doctor who has extensive experience treating vascular diseases. RAYUS Vascular Care's interventional radiologists offer this experience. You can continue your daily activities after the procedure but should avoid strenuous workouts for two days and reduce their intensity for about a week.
Many patients will experience immediate relief and most patients will experience complete relief within 2 to 6 weeks. Sclerotherapy is one of the best treatments for spider veins, but it can also be used for varicose veins. The treatment involves injecting a chemical solution into the vein which causes the walls to swell and stick together, closing and stopping blood flow. As a result, the vein shrinks within a few weeks. The number of injections a patient needs depends on the location and size of their veins and patients will need to wear bandages or compression stockings for a couple of weeks after treatment but can return to their normal activities the same day. Our surgeons can restore blood flow to the arteries in the legs using a thin catheter (tube) placed in the artery in the groin or elbow.
We perform many of these procedures on an outpatient basis with minimal discomfort and a short recovery time. Fortunately, significant advances in medical and cosmetic treatment options have made vein removal a thing of the past, and today's patients enjoy a more comprehensive, comfortable and successful range of treatment options to choose from. But before we talk about the main venous treatments available, let's take a closer look at the definition of varicose veins and how they differ from spider veins. Both spider veins and varicose veins occur when the walls of the veins and internal valves weaken and malfunction, causing blood to accumulate, putting additional pressure on the veins. We seal varicose veins with lasers (radiofrequency energy) or newer technologies such as glue, foam or catheter to irritate the veins.
Treating varicose veins in St Louis is essential to avoid developing more serious health problems in the future as chances of developing varicose veins increase with age and heredity is also believed to play an important role in their development. If you have spider veins, varicose veins or other vein disease contact MINT today and let us help you decide what treatment option is best for you.
