Spider and Reticular Veins

What Are Reticular Veins?

While many people have probably heard of varicose veins and spider veins, fewer may be familiar with reticular veins. They are the middle child of chronic venous insufficiency (CVI). They are smaller than varicose veins—roughly 2mm in diameter. They also do not protrude above the skin like varicose veins.

Reticular and varicose veins do look similar in color—blue or purple. They also appear in many of the same areas of the body. The inner and back of the thigh are common spots, as well as the lower leg and ankle. Occasionally, they will appear on the face, but this is more common with spider veins.

Reticular veins will sometimes feed into spider veins. This is why they’re also called feeder veins. When they do this, they serve as a source of excess blood for the spider veins. In cases like this, removing the reticular veins can help eliminate the spider veins as well.

Reticular Vein Symptoms

Reticular veins may cause pain and discomfort in the surrounding area. They may also itch or burn at times. In rare cases, the presence of reticular veins can indicate blood backup in deeper parts of the leg.

In the majority of cases, however, reticular veins are just a cosmetic issue that can be easily treated.

How to treat Reticular Vein?

LUMECCA IPL

Lumecca IPL effectively diminishes vascular imperfections, such as port wine stains, facial, truncal, and leg telangiectasias, rosacea, erythema of rosacea, angiomas, spider angiomas, poikilodenna of Civatte, superficial leg veins, and venous malformations.

Lumecca by InMode is an advanced Intense Pulsed Light (IPL) technology used for various skin treatments. It is a high-performance, non-invasive aesthetic device designed to address a wide range of skin issues, including pigmented and vascular lesions, sun damage, age spots, rosacea, and certain types of birthmarks. Lumecca operates on the principle of selective photothermolysis, which means it delivers precise light energy to target specific skin concerns without damaging surrounding tissues. The treatment is known for its effectiveness, often requiring fewer sessions than traditional IPL treatments, and it offers minimal discomfort and downtime for patients.

EXCEL V LASER

When it comes to treating blood vessel conditions such as rosacea, facial redness and visible veins, we can’t go past the Excel V laser. The Excel V is primarily a vascular laser, using two wavelengths to target visible veins and blood vessels, redness, flushing and rosacea on the face, neck and chest.

In the past, finding a laser to treat a broad range of vascular conditions was challenging. The Excel V has superseded any other choice for vascular complaints and has been a breakthrough technology. The laser is a high powered green light that the targeted blood vessels in the skin absorb.

We use what’s known as selective photothermolysis to selectively destroy targeted tissue – in this case, blood vessels we usually can’t even see – by modifying the settings of the lasers. The thermal energy from the laser heats the vessel until the wall collapses and seals closed. Over time, the vein disappears and the redness with it.

The Excel V is essentially three lasers in one, with two different wavelengths and a Genesis element. We use these different wavelengths as follows: