Treatment for Facial Thread Veins
Effective treatment for facial thread veins can usually be achieved by using one of the following techniques:
All of these techniques work by using heat to destroy the blood vessel.
Injecting vessels on the face is NOT recommended except in very rare cases.
The most important reason for this is that the veins in the skin over the nose and cheek area drain through a vein by the eye and on to blood vessels around the brain called the cavernous sinus.
There is a risk that injecting drugs into the facial ‘veins’ can cause a clot to form inside the blood vessels in the centre of the brain – a condition called cavernous sinus thrombosis. This can be a very dangerous condition and therefore such injections are very unwise.
Advanced Electrolysis
Advanced Electrolysis is a technique of passing an electric current through the skin from a needle, causing heat to be generated.
To prevent damage to the skin, it is essential that the person performing the treatment be well trained in the advanced use of Advanced Electrolysis. Only fully trained practitioners will have the experience to ensure that the depth of the burn is at the right level to treat the blood vessel with minimal damage to the skin. At Absolute Aesthetics, our practitioners are fully trained and experienced in performing this sensitive technique.
When treated to the right depth, the heat produced by the current destroys the blood vessel. This then heals by fibrosis ensuring the blood vessel will never reappear. Although other facial thread veins can form, the treated vessel destroyed by heat will never re-open again.
If the treatment is not carried out to the right depth, a small area of the skin may burn. If this happens it can be difficult to see the underlying blood vessel and whilst it may look like the vein has been treated, when the skin heals, the blood vessel is still visibly unscathed.
In trained hands Advanced Electrolysis is a highly effective treatment. It is almost impossible to permanently scar the skin using the correct procedure and is usually the least expensive way to treat this condition.
The downside is that each vein has to be treated individually by following along the vein and treating it at regular, very small intervals which can take a very long time. Therefore, several sessions are generally required as only relatively small patches can be treated in one session.
But given that most people can see about a 60% improvement to the treated area after just one treatment session it is the ideal way to get rid of facial thread veins over a number of sessions.
For more information on this, or to book an appointment to see one our specialists, please contact us.
Intense Pulsed Light (IPL)
IPL can be used for hair removal on most areas of the body. It is also used for skin rejuvenation, thread vein removal and many skin complaints caused by ageing or sun damage.
So what is IPL and how does it work for thread veins?
IPL (Intense Pulsed Light) uses light energy to heat the blood in the thread veins. The heat destroys the wall of the thread veins.
In some ways it can be thought of as being like laser. The difference is that laser uses only one wavelength of light whereas IPL uses all of the different wavelengths making up white light. The intensity of the light beams can be adjusted using filters.
The light energy is very intense, transferring a very large amount of power to the blood in a very short space of time, causing it to heat up and destroy the vein wall. The light energy is delivered in a series of pulses – hence the name Intense Pulse Light!
During a 'pulse' the blood in a thread vein absorbs the light and heats up and then the gap between the pulses allows the skin to cool down. By calculating the number of pulses, the amount of energy that is put into each pulse and the amount of time that the light is off between the pulses, an expert practitioner is able to make sure that the maximum energy is delivered into the thread veins. All of this gives the best chance of destroying the veins, whilst keeping the skin as cool as possible meaning there is much less risk of damage to the surrounding skin.
In general terms, the whiter the skin the more light it reflects and therefore the easier thread veins are to treat.
Intense Pulsed Light treatment of facial thread veins usually necessitates three to five sessions. After each session the veins will start to reduce but as they begin to heal, the next session keeps fading them away, so that after three to five sessions there should be a substantial improvement. Treatments are usually two to three weeks apart to allow healing between the sessions.
When IPL is performed, there is an intense flash of light and this may be repeated many times, depending on the area that needs to be treated. The therapist will therefore ask you to wear some eye protection (and they will wear eye protection too).
Some gel is applied to the skin. This not only cools the skin during treatment but also provides a good contact between the IPL treatment head and the area of skin to be treated.
After treatment there is often quite a strong red reaction from the skin of the treated area like a patch of localised sunburn. Therefore, for a few days afterwards it can be quite tender. However, as this settles down the desired effect should be seen.
For more information on this, or to book an appointment to see one our specialists, please contact us.
Laser For Facial Thread Vein Treatment
Some clinics or practitioners use laser for thread vein treatments of the face. It is very similar to Intense Pulsed Light in that intense light energy is transferred to the pigment in the blood of the thread vein – the haemoglobin. This then heats the blood up very quickly which destroys the small thread vein walls, which then get inflamed and slowly shrivel away.
Laser is usually performed using a small pencil-like hand piece with an aiming beam showing where the laser energy is going to hit the skin. The laser energy is delivered in intense bursts and the laser expert or technician usually follows the thread veins along with a series of treatment impulses. Once again, during the procedure eye protection is usually worn and quite often a cooling gel or cooling pads are applied straight after treatment.
For more information on this, or to book an appointment to see one our specialists, please contact us.
Summary
In summary, thread veins on the face are quite common in white skin. They tend to occur either on the cheeks or around the nose. They can be red or blue-purple, depending on their size.
Unlike leg thread veins, they are mainly arterial in nature and should not be injected. They are treated effectively by electrolysis (electrocoagulation), Intense Pulsed Light (IPL) or laser.
To find out more or to book an appointment please contact us.