What are thread veins?
Thread veins, also known as spider veins, are small, prominent veins just below the skin's surface. They tend to branch and provide a spider’s web looking pattern, hence their common name. Spider veins can be found anywhere on the body, but most frequently on the legs and face.
What are leg thread veins?
Leg thread veins are small, prominent veins which are present just below the skin's surface and are visible through the skin. Typically blue / purple in colour they tend to group together like a spiders web (hence the name spider veins), when present on the leg they are referred to as Leg thread veins.
What causes leg thread veins?
On the legs, spider veins can occur when the valves inside the veins stop working correctly. Blood is carried through the veins back to the heart. They contain a one-way valve to prevent the blood's backward flow, closing once the blood passes through. If these valves weaken or become damaged, the flow of blood becomes sluggish and may struggle to maintain a constant flow, which can lead to pooling inside the vein. Over time, this can cause a bulge in the vein, which branches out, resulting in spider veins.
Best Leg Thread Vein Removal Treatment
If you have thread veins in the legs and want to improve the way they look, sclerotherapy is a popular thread vein removal treatment at Dr Leah Clinics that may provide the answer. This is the gold standard treatment for removing thread veins in the legs.
We offer this treatment at Dr Leah Clinics with our resident expert at leg thread vein removal – Dr Manav.
We offer this treatment at Dr Leah Clinics with our resident expert at leg thread vein removal – Dr Manav.
How does sclerotherapy work?
- Administered via injection, this method for treating thread veins in the legs is highly effective. At Dr Leah Clinics we specialise in thread vein removal at our Essex clinic. The thread veins are injected with a solution called a sclerosant that irritates the lining of the vein and causes blood clotting within the vein. The treated veins are gradually absorbed by your body and disappear.
- Sclerotherapy is used for thread veins, spider veins, and any vein under 4mm in diameter, which can include smaller varicose veins, purple and blue veins. However, Sclerotherapy it is not suitable for large varicose veins (lumpy, wriggly veins) over 4mm, or facial veins.
After the treatment, leg veins that are successfully treated are gone for good, but there is no cure for the underlying vein condition and treatment cannot prevent new veins appearing in the future.
Why Choose Dr Leah Clinics To Treat This Concern?
Our Essex clinic doctor and GP, Dr Manav, is highly experienced in treating leg thread veins – treating hundreds of patients each year.
Risk factors for thread veins in legs
- Genetics- Almost 90 percent of people having thread/spider veins have a previous family history.
- Pregnancy- During pregnancy, the added demands of the foetus greatly increases blood flow around the body, which puts more demand on the leg veins. Some women notice that after pregnancy their spider veins disappear, but they can be constant.
- Age – The valves in veins tend to get weaker over time. The calf muscles, which help support the veins in the legs and enable them to pump blood upward, may also lose some of their strength as a person ages.
- Being overweight - this can place added pressure on leg veins.
- Female gender – spider veins are more commonly seen in women than in men
- Hormones - oestrogen can weaken vein valves which means hormonal changes such as the combined contraceptive pill or menopause can cause spider veins
- Not moving for extended periods - Veins in the legs have to work harder to pump blood up toward the heart when a person remains in the same position for several hours at a time.
- A previous blood clot or injury - This can damage the vein valves and make them unable to work properly.
- Sun damage - UV from the sun can damage the skin and cause spider veins
Book a consultation for our leg thread veins today.
book online - Leg Vein consultationLeg vein removal treatment
book online - Leg Vein consultationLeg vein removal treatment
Commonly Asked Questions
A solution is injected with a very tiny needle, very superficially into the vein, causing the lining of the vein to swell and become sticky. Compression is then applied to close the vein.
Over a period of time the vein will heal closed and fade away. The results achieved after one treatment vary considerably from one client to another. You should budget for up to 4 treatments 4 - 16 weeks apart. You can expect an improvement in appearance of 60 - 80%.
Over a period of time the vein will heal closed and fade away. The results achieved after one treatment vary considerably from one client to another. You should budget for up to 4 treatments 4 - 16 weeks apart. You can expect an improvement in appearance of 60 - 80%.
