Sclerotherapy / Endovenous Chemical Ablation

Sclerotherapy has become the most versatile component of vein treatment.  To sclerose is literally to cause something to harden.  In this case the vein becomes hard, collapses, and gradually disappears.  Because sclerotherapy has traditionally been thought of as a procedure for purely cosmetic purposes, and because it is a more accurate term, Phlebologists are using the term endovenous chemical ablation more frequently.  This means to use a solution injected into the vein to cause it to collapse, die, and then disappear.

Sclerotherapy, endovenous chemical ablation, or ECA for short is used many times every day around the world to treat spider veins and larger varicose veins.  Sclerotherapy consists of injecting a solution into a vein; collapsing it.  The vein is then naturally removed by the body.  Sclerotherapy has been the most common method for treating very small spider veins.

Since the advent of Doppler ultrasound in vein treatment sclerotherapy or ECA has become an even more important part of vein treatment.  Ultrasound is used to see veins that cannot be seen from the skin surface.  The ultrasound is used in real time to guide the needle into the vein, and the skilled physician is able to see the solution entering the vein, and spreading into the diseased veins.  This form of ECA is referred to as ultrasound guided sclerotherapy.  The sclerosant is often mixed with air and agitated into foam.  Hence the term ultrasound guided foamed sclerotherapy. 

At bod:evolve veins we use sclerotherapy on virtually every patient at various points in their treatment.  Once the most significant veins are treated the cosmetically undesirable veins are treated at your request.  Insurance does not cover payment for veins that are considered to be purely a cosmetic concern. Call today to schedule your initial office visit to learn the best methods of treating your abnormal veins.

Foamed Sclerotherapy

The sclerosant solution most often used in the United States is Sotrodecol®. This FDA approved solution is a mild detergent. Using a detergent gives the solution at least two desirable qualities. One is with an adequate concentration the abnormal vein collapses and closes so blood is diverted into healthy veins. The other is that air or other gases can be mixed with the solution and agitated into foam. When the foam is injected into the vein it displaces the blood and fills the blood vessel more effectively than liquid sclerosant. Because of this we can use lower concentrations, and lower volumes of the sclerosant solution to treat vessels more effectively than liquid sclerosant.

This means that when we use foam we don’t inject as much of the solution, and we inject a weaker solution, but we get better results than if we used more of the liquid solution at a higher concentration. This still sounds a little confusing. So, just remember you get more with less. Foamed sclerotherapy is an advanced technique. It is used frequently at bod:evolve veins to treat varicose and spider veins that may be difficult to treat with other methods. Call us for your initial evaluation. We will advise you with the most effective treatment for your vein disease.

Ultrasound Guided Sclerotherapy

Ultrasound imaging uses sound waves, and their reflection to create images of body parts. In Phlebology ultrasound is vital to accurate diagnosis and treatment. Since sclerotherapy can be used to effectively eliminate veins of many sizes the veins needing treatment may not be visible from the surface of the skin. When this is the case the phlebologist will use ultrasound to “see” the vein needing treatment. When the vein is seen on the ultrasound screen the needle is guided into the vein using ultrasound to see both the vein and the needle. When the tip of the needle is seen in the vein the sclerosant solution is injected. Sclerosant foam is very visible when viewed with ultrasound images. This allows the phlebologist to confirm the effective treatment of the target veins. At bod:evolve veins we use these advanced techniques alone or in combination with other techniques to most effectively treat your vein disease. Call us today to schedule your initial evaluation including ultrasound mapping of your varicose veins..

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