I had endovenous laser ablation of saphenous vein, and now I'm told I need 3 sclerotherapy sessions. is this so? only one is covered by my insurance. I was told that only having 1 could be harmfull, is this true?
Sclerotherapy injections are used to close the branches of the closed saphenous veins that were done by laser. They also can be used for the visible spider veins. A lot of the time, insurance will not cover these as they are considered cosmetic, however, if the vein that was reported is big enough and has enough reflux, the insurance most of the time will cover those but may not cover the others that do not meet the insurance requirements. In regards to it being harmful, it is not harmful however if you want complete results, all incompetent veins should be treated.
Published on Jul 11, 2012
Sclerotherapy should no be harmful.
It is generally done the treat the leftover veins. It is usually not essential for pain but for the appearance of the remaining veins.
Michael D. Ingegno
Published on Jul 11, 2012
Sclerotherapy of tributary branches is very commonly done after endovenous laser treatment of the saphenous veins. The number of sclerotherapy sessions needed depends on the number of veins that need to be treated. It is a safe procedure for the most part, provided certain precautions are taken and it is done by someone who has expertise.
Dr Farhy
Published on Jul 11, 2012
I can't think of a reason why one sclerotherapy session would be harmful but three sessions are safe.
Published on Jul 11, 2012
No sclero is covered by insurance unless some funny coding is going on.
Published on Jul 11, 2012
It is difficult to say without knowing your full history. Which vein/s are they injecting? If you are having this under ultrasound guidance for a refluxing perforator vein, it can take more than one treatment.
We usually get a pre-determination for 3 visits for coverage if needed. Often they won't be needed but your could check if your physician applied to insurance for 3. If they are injecting varicose veins, it is a different scenario. In our practices, being surgical based, we usually remove the varicosities in a cosmetic manner (microphlebectomy). This is usually done at the same time as the EVLA unless the veins are particularly large and is usually one treatment.
Norman N. Bein MD FACS RVT
Published on Jul 11, 2012
One sclerotherapy is not harmful and sclerotherapy usually requires multiple treatments. 3 treatments are about the average to eradicate most spider veins. You are lucky that even one is covered by insurance. Most insurance companies consider sclerotherapy to be cosmetic and will not cover it.
Published on Jul 11, 2012