Unsuccessful Sclerotherapy. Another Option for Vein Treatment?

asked 1 year ago by Anonymous781 in Maple Ridge, BC
Latest answer by Vivek Bansal, MD
Question viewed 382 times
Tags: legs, options, pigmentation

I had sclerotherapy last year to try to remove a blue vein on my leg. It wasnt bulging out, was just visible under the skin. I pigmented after the treatment and a year later, I still have pigmentation and the vein is still there! As well, I have since developed a couple other small veins in the surrounding area. I feel like the injections made my leg worse. Because of the pigmenting, I am hesitant to have sclerotherapy done again. What are my other options to get rid of the veins for good?

6 answers to Unsuccessful Sclerotherapy. Another Option for Vein Treatment?

Vein Treatment

You should consider seeing a Board Certified Dermatologist or Board Certified Plastic Surgeon with perhaps a different injection solution or even laser therapy. The discoloration is going to be there any time a vein is closed as this is just heme staining from the absorbing blood cells leaving a little iron on the tissue. I like the 1064 Yag or consider a VBeam by Candela.

Vivek Bansal, MD
Danville Plastic Surgeon

A: Leg Vein Treatment Other Than Sclerotherapy

Thank you for your question. You may be a good candidate for laser treatment for your leg veins. In our San Francisco Bay Area practice we frequently treat leg veins with laser and have a high patient satisfaction rate. Our laser is effective at treating broken capillaries and small spider veins to larger darker veins. Laser treatment, like sclerotherapy, may require several treatments and may make veins look worse before they look better (usually for less than 4 weeks).... more

Steven H. Williams, MD
San Francisco Plastic Surgeon

Treatment options after previous sclerotherapy

It is not usual to need more than one treatment with sclerotherapy, regardless of what type of solution was used. Laser vein treatment for blue veins and smaller red telangiectasias is also very effective. Either laser or sclerotherapy both have their risks, like hemosidirin staining, after treatment. Another common side effect is the appearance of a new collection of smaller red vessels or matting of vessels in a treated area. Though your outcome may not have... more

Grant Stevens, MD
Los Angeles Plastic Surgeon

Sclerotherapy--a series of treatments, side effects explained

Sclerotherapy can be accomplished with a combination of solutions. I would be curious to know what was used for the injection of your blue vein (reticular vein). Hypertonic saline injections can cause the greatest degree of side efefcts and discomfort during sclerotherapy. I do not use this solution, but instead use detergent solutions that are foamed (for reticular veins and varicose veins) and a sugar solution called glycerin for smaller telangiectasias. ... more

Melanie D. Palm, MD
San Diego Dermatologic Surgeon

Varicose Vein Road Map

The usually cause for sclerotherapy failure is poor pre-procedure planning. Most of the patients that we see with sclerotherapy failure are due to undiagnosed superficial venous hypertension. In other words, vein pressure due to varicose vein problems below the skin surface. How is superficial venous hypertension discovered during physical examination? By ultrasound. Many offices offer sclerotherapy vein injections to shut down superficial varicose veins and... more

James E. White, MD
Chattanooga General Surgeon

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