What are Facial Thread Veins?

Facial thread veins are usually bright red. Very occasionally, they can be blue or purple and can be enlarged or bulging. However, the vast majority of facial thread veins are bright red, very thin and, when you push on them with a finger, they blanch, filling almost immediately afterwards.

Although they are called 'thread veins', they are normally not veins at all. More usually they are dilated capillary networks from your arteries and not your veins (arteries take blood from the heart to the rest of the body and veins return blood to the heart). Because of this, the blood inside them is more oxygenated and therefore brighter red. The blood is often at a higher pressure, which is why they refill so quickly after pressure has been applied to them.

Although this may appear to be pedantic, it is very important, as it affects the choice of treatments. It is precisely because they are not veins that the treatment for them is different from that of thread veins in the legs.

Another difference between the face and the legs is the nature of the skin around the thread veins. The skin on the face is exposed to the elements daily and, as such, is resistant to burning. Conversely the skin of the legs is less exposed to the sun and elements and is more sensitive to burning.

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