Veingogh spider vein treatment uses a tiny needle inserted next to the spider vein to heat the vein so the blood inside clots, and the spider vein fades away over time. Veingogh is a brand name for a procedure called ohmic thermolysis, or radiofrequency thermocoagulation. Veingogh is well suited for small spider veins on the face or nose, where traditional sclerotherapy spider vein treatment is more difficult to administer.
How Veingogh treats spider veins
Ohmic thermolysis—such as with the VeinGogh device—heats the blood in the spider vein, which causes it to clot. This scars the inside of the vein. Eventually the vein will be reabsorbed by the body and fade away.
During the procedure, your doctor inserts a hair-thin needle, or probe, attached to a control device through the skin until the tip is next to the spider vein.
The needle produces bursts of high-frequency electrical energy that flows into the vein. This causes the blood in the vein to heat up, which leads to the blood clotting and the walls of the vein collapsing.
The probe is insulated except at the tip, so the electrical energy reaches only the vein and not the nearby tissue.
Benefits of Veingogh treatment
One of the main benefits of ohmic thermolysis is that a vein specialist is able to treat spider veins without having to insert a needle into the small spider veins. Spider veins can also be treated with surface laser therapy, but these treatments can be expensive.
Because the needle used during ohmic thermolysis only has to be placed near the spider vein to work, the procedure takes less time—around 20 to 25 minutes. The needle tracts are visible after the procedure, but these usually disappear after a few days or weeks.
In addition, the needle barely pierces the skin, so it is a largely painless procedure, requiring no anesthesia. You may feel a burning sensation during the treatment. Your doctor may apply an ice pack to the area to be treated for 10 to 20 seconds beforehand to reduce this discomfort.
If you have a few spider veins, these can be cleared in one or two treatments. A larger number of spider veins would require several more treatments. This treatment works on veins up to 0.3 millimeters in diameter. It will not work on larger varicose or reticular veins.
However, larger veins can be treated with other procedures, such as sclerotherapy and surface laser therapy. If you have both spider and varicose veins, your doctor may recommend a multi-stage treatment over several sessions.
Veingogh recovery
You will be able to resume your normal activities immediately after your procedure. Your skin may be sensitive for about a week. Applying aloe vera gel over the treatment area may help with this. You should avoid exposing the area to direct sun for one or two weeks after the procedure, or apply a sunscreen with an SPF of 30 or higher if you do go outside.
It can take several weeks for your body to reabsorb the veins after the procedure. You will see your spider veins fade over this time. These veins should not come back, but the procedure will not stop new spider veins from forming.
Updated Aug. 31, 2017
