How long does it usually take for the legs to heal after scleotherapy?

For some patients, healing will continue to improve up to 8 weeks after the Sclerotherapy procedure. Total healing time depends on the type and size of veins that were treated. 

As a sclerotherapy expert, I generally advise my patients to wear a compression stocking 24 hours a day for one week and then a lighter weight compression stocking during the day for another2-3 weeks after sclerotherapy. There really is no downtime after the procedure, and it is good to walk after treatment, just avoid strenuous activity for a few days. Without seeing the size and types of veins that you have, it is impossible to predict when your legs will look better. In general it takes 1-2 months to see an improvement and up to 6 months for the full effects to be seen.

Using compression of sorts ( either local taping, ace wraps or compression stockings) has been thought to reduce the amount of bruising and discolorations after schlerotherapy. Having said that , however, in other countries, studies have not proven that this  makes a significant difference with the small spider veins and even 3-5 mm reticular veins.There really is no downtime after the procedure, in fact, we recommended walking after treatments.  Avoid strenuous activity for a few days, soaking in hot baths or saunas.  The amount of bruising ant the longevity of the side effects, really depend on the  size and types of veins and the method used to destroy the veins.

I think that 1 week of high grade compression is all that most people will tolerate in Florida, California and Texas. In colder climates, especially in winter months, we recommend stockings for 3 months and we have found that patients have better cosmetic outcomes with prolonged compression. I recommend that patients use sunblock (Spectrase) and use skin brightening creams such as Scleroquin to reduce post inflammatory hyperpigmentation. 

Following sclerotherapy there may be some associated bruising and bluish to reddish discoloration of the treated veins. An average amount of time for bruising is about 10 days but this will vary between people from no bruising to 3 to 4 weeks to resolve. Compression stockings post treatment will help to keep the bruising to a minimum.