Spider Leg Veins Research Articles

Microcautery for the Treatment of Spider Leg Veins

Microcautery for the Treatment of Spider Leg Veins

Evaluation and Treatment of Cosmetic Spider and Reticular Leg Veins

Evaluation and Treatment of Cosmetic Spider and Reticular Leg Veins

Dermoscopy-Assisted Sclerotherapy for Spider Leg Veins

1Department of Dermatology and Skin Science, University of British Columbia, Vancouver General Hospital, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada 2Division of Dermatology, Department of Medicine, King Saud Bin Abdulaziz University for Health Sciences, King Fahad National Guard Hospital, King Abdulaziz Medical City, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia

Optimal and safe treatment of spider leg veins measuring less than 1.5 mm on skin type IV patients, using repeated low-fluence Nd:YAG laser pulses after polidocanol injection

Treatment of micro-veins of less than 1.5 mm with laser and with chemical sclerosis is technically challenging because of their difficulty to remedy. Laser treatment is even more difficult when dark phototypes are involved.Three groups of 30 patients each, skin type IV, and vessels measuring less than 1.5 mm in diameter, were enrolled for two treatment sessions 8 weeks apart: group A, polidocanol (POL) micro-foam injection; group B, Nd:YAG laser alone; and group C, laser after POL injection. Repeated 8-Hz low-fluence pulses, moving the hand piece over a 3-cm vein segment with an average of five laser passes maximum and with a total time irradiation of 1 s were used. Sixteen weeks after the second treatment, statistically, degree of clearance after examining photographs and patients satisfaction index, plotted on a visual analogue scale and comparing results of all three groups, results were significantly better for group C (p<0.0001). No significant differences in complications were noticed between the three groups. Efficacy of combining POL and laser proved safe and satisfactory in 96 % of patients using low-fluence laser pulses with a total cumulative energy in the 3 cm venous segment, lower than that of conventional treatment. Very few and transient complications were observed. POL foam injection followed by laser pulses is safe and efficient for vein treatment in dark-skinned patients.

Response of spider leg veins to pulsed diode laser (810 nm): a clinical, histological and remission spectroscopy study

BACKGROUND: Spider leg veins are common. Their treatment with laser or intensed light therapy shows generally variable success rates and often adverse side effects such as hyper‐ or hypopigmentation. This study was performed to investigate whether pulsed diode laser (810 nm) treatment is effective and safe.METHODS: Thirty‐five female patients with spider leg veins were included in this prospective trial. They were treated twice with a pulsed diode laser (810 nm; spot size 12 mm, frequency 2–4 Hz, pulse width 60 msec, fluence 80–100 Jcm−2). Laser therapy was performed on day 0 and day 14. Clinical assessments were carried out before and immediately after the first laser therapy, after 2 weeks, 8 weeks, and one year. Skin biopsies were taken before and immediately after the first laser treatment, and after 10 weeks. Contact‐free remittance spectroscopy was performed before laser treatment, immediately after the first treatment, after 2 weeks and 8 weeks.RESULTS: After the first treatment 15 patients showed a complete disappearance (CR) of spider leg veins; in the remaining 20 patients a remarkable improvement (RI) was noted (n=35). After six months of follow‐up CR was seen in 6 patients, RI in 6, a stable situation in 9, and scar formation in 1 patient (n=21). The effect was almost completely stable during one year of follow‐up. The examination of histological specimens before and after laser treatment showed no cellular inflammatory reaction. The mean vascular area was significantly reduced after the first (p<0.05) and after the second (p<0.05) laser treatment. Spectral analysis showed a marked decrease of peaks for oxygenized haemoglobin immediately after laser treatment and during the follow‐up. Safety profile was excellent without purpuric reaction or pigmentary changes. Mild scarring was observed in two patients at the end of follow‐up.CONCLUSIONS: Pulsed diode laser therapy (810 nm) is an effective and safe treatment option for spider leg veins. The effects can be seen immediately. Objective monitoring by non‐invasive remission spectroscopy and histology of biopsy specimens demonstrates selectivity of the laser action.

Laser therapy of spider leg veins

Spider leg veins are a common aesthetic problem in females. The standard treatment is sclerotherapy but lasers have been used for decades to solve this problem as well. To review recent advances in laser physics and its tissue interactions with skin vessels. The different laser types used to treat spider leg veins are discussed, including their advantages, limitations and possible adverse effects. The international literature on laser therapy for spider leg veins has been reviewed with particular emphasis on the last decade. Recent developments in laser technology allow a more selective and well-tolerated therapy. Efficacy has also improved. Most studies report a greater than 75% improvement in spider leg veins as a realistic goal for laser therapy. Clinic response depends upon wavelength, fluence, pulse width and pulse duration, cooling and the diameter and colour of spider leg veins. Sclerotherapy remains the gold standard treatment for spider leg veins. Nevertheless, laser therapy has become increasingly efficacious and convenient. Laser selectivity has been improved by technological progress. The ideal laser, however, has yet to be invented.

Treatment of Cutaneous Vascular Lesions with the Variable Pulse Width Frequency DoubledNeodymium:YAG Laser

Summary The VersaPulse® is a variable pulse with frequency double Neodymium:YAG laser. The pulse width can be adjusted between 2 and 50 ms. We report our actual results using this laser device in the most common vascular lesions (port wine stains, facial teleangiectasia, spider leg veins). The data reported in the literature and our own results suggest that this laser type is a valid alternative to the commonly used Flashlamp Pulsed Dye Laser (FPDL). The easy mode of application and the few side effects make this device very suitable for the practice. The laser has to be tested in comparison to the FPDL in a prospective clinical trial.

Successful treatment of spider leg veins with a high-energy, long-pulse, frequency-doubled neodymium:YAG laser (HELP-G)

While sclerotherapy has been the standard treatment for spider leg veins for many years, recent advances have allowed lasers to be considered as a treatment option. To study the efficacy of a frequency-doubled Nd:YAG laser at 532 nm with a 50 ms pulse width and chill tip device in the treatment of spider leg veins. Forty-six patients with spider leg veins with a diameter of less than 1 mm or 1-2 mm were treated with a frequency-doubled Nd:YAG laser at 532 nm with a pulse width of 50 ms (VersaPulse HELP-G laser) while using a water-cooled chill tip device. Of patients with veins less than 1 mm in diameter, 60% had greater than 50% clearing after one treatment and 80% had greater than 50% clearing after two treatments. Of patients with veins 1-2 mm in diameter, 39% achieved greater than 50% clearing after one treatment and 67% had greater than 50% clearing after two sessions. Our results suggest that the frequency-doubled Nd:YAG laser with a pulse width of 50 ms and chill tip device offers an excellent alternative to sclerotherapy in the treatment of small spider leg veins.