Arteries carry blood away from the heart and veins deliver blood back. There are flaps inside the veins called valves, which help to direct flow back to the heart. If heredity, pregnancy, or an injury causes these valves to weaken or lose function, blood tends to pool in the veins, which causes distention and/or clotting.

Spider veins are smaller incompetent veins, which may appear red or purple, and may appear in clusters. Although unsightly, spider veins rarely develop complications like varicose veins can. Some patients have a combination of varicose and spider veins, or they may occur separately.

What are the symptoms?

Symptoms of varicose veins (and to a lesser extent spider veins) may develop such as pain, heaviness, swelling, and achiness. Patients may complain that their legs feel “hot”. There may be unsightly bulging or a ropy appearance of the veins along with purplish or bluish discolorization. Varicose veins and venous insufficiency may lead to complications. Blood may collect in the superficial venous system causing inflammatory changes and clotting called phlebitis. Soft tissue swelling or edema may cause skin to break down with development of painful venous stasis ulcers or wounds.

An examination by a physician and possibly an ultrasound may be performed to check for abnormal vein function. Options for treatment include compression stockings to help with symptoms but not progression of the disease. New techniques for treating varicose veins may be performed as an outpatient in-office procedure. These techniques offer a more acceptable alternative to vein stripping, which must be performed in the hospital and has a painful, prolonged recovery. Options include ultrasound guided closure of the abnormal vein using a small pinprick near the knee with a catheter insertion. The catheter is then heated and slowly withdrawn along the length of the vein, thereby sealing it shut. Ambulatory phlebectomy is another office based procedure using local anesthetics or numbing medicine and tiny incisions. Sclerotherapy may be performed to small varicose or spider veins. This technique involves injection of a special substance which causes the veins to collapse and fade away. Dr. Wladis and Dr. Ranson have extensive experience in these techniques, and are able to offer these solutions in-office.