I saw this young lady today who had been to a cosmetic clinic for removal of leg thread veins.
She had not been offered a Doppler or duplex ultrasound, and so the clinic had missed her underlying venous reflux ("hidden varicose veins") which contributed to her thread veins.
In addition, she had been treated with external Laser to the skin, which had failed to get rid of the majority of the thread veins, and had left her after healing for several months, with these very noticeable white scars on the skin.
Although external laser treatment is very good for thread veins of the face, which is above the heart and therefore there are no gravity problems associated with the thread veins and the facial skin is very resistant to heat as it is always exposed, the reverse is found for thread veins of the legs.
Thread veins of the legs are affected by gravity, especially if associated with underlying "hidden" varicose veins, and so it is essential to have a venous duplex ultrasound before any treatment is planned.
Once treatment is planned and the underlying veins are fixed, the thread veins of the legs should be treated with microsclerotherapy injections and NOT external laser, which can easily burn and scar the skin of the leg, which is far more sensitive to radiation and laser.
see:
www.thread-veins.co.uk
