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Side Effects of Sclerotherapy

Sclerotherapy is a minimally invasive medical treatment that tackles spider veins and small varicose veins.

How Sclerotherapy Works

During a sclerotherapy procedure, your provider will inject a syringe of saline solution directly into the problematic vein.

The solution damages the vein, forcing it to collapse. When this happens, your body redirects blood flow to surrounding veins that are healthier. Because the problem vein is essentially starved of blood, it dies.

Over time, your body absorbs the collapsed vein into its healthy tissue, which causes it to completely disappear.

Is Sclerotherapy Safe?

Sclerotherapy is extremely safe. It has been around for almost a hundred years, and it is the preferred treatment method for spider veins and small varicose veins.

Sclerotherapy Side Effects

It’s normal to experience minor side effects at the treatment site following sclerotherapy.

Some of these temporary side effects include:

  • Bruising
  • Small skin sores
  • Multiple tiny red blood vessels
  • Raised red areas
  • Darkened skin

Generally, these temporary side effects go away after a few days or a few weeks. These side effects may continue for months or years before disappearing completely.

Although these side effects may be inconvenient, they are not a cause for alarm in most cases.

Sclerotherapy Side Effects that May Require Treatment

There are some rare side effects from sclerotherapy that may require treatment.

One example is an allergic reaction. Allergic reactions to the solution used in sclerotherapy treatment are possible but relatively uncommon.

Inflammation is another potential side effect that may require treatment. In most cases, inflammation from sclerotherapy is relatively mild. In other cases, however, inflammation can cause swelling and discomfort around the treated area.

If this happens, contact your doctor. They will most likely advise you to take an over-the-counter pain reliever such as ibuprofen or aspirin to help reduce inflammation.

Blood clots are a rare but concerning potential side effect of sclerotherapy. A blood clot happens when a lump of clotted blood forms in the treated vein and requires drainage.

The blood clot can travel to a deeper vein in your leg in rare cases. This condition is called deep vein thrombosis.

In severe cases, deep vein thrombosis can lead to pulmonary embolism, an extremely rare complication of sclerotherapy. A pulmonary embolism is an emergency where the blood clot travels from the vein in your leg into your lungs, blocking a vital artery.

If you experience difficulty breathing, cough up blood, or have chest pain or dizziness following a sclerotherapy procedure, you should seek immediate medical care.

Preparing for Sclerotherapy

In most cases, sclerotherapy procedures go smoothly and have no complications or issues.

Sclerotherapy has more than a 90 percent success rate. It is minimally invasive and only takes fifteen to thirty minutes to complete.

If you’re weighing the risks and rewards of sclerotherapy, the best thing you can do is contact us at Metropolitan Vein and Aesthetic Center to speak to one of our compassionate medical experts. We will answer all of your questions and advise you on the best course of treatment for your aesthetic goals.

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