Vascular Lesions
What is a benign vascular lesion?
Benign vascular lesions are overgrown enlarged blood
vessels or multiple small vessels. There is a way to treat
these vessels, safely, easily and effectively with the VBeam laser for vascular
lesions by targeting the red blood cells which in turn
heat and damage the vessels
Before and after laser treatment of leg veins
Courtesy of CANDELA Laser Corp.
What kind of vascular lesions are treated with the laser?
The vascular laser can treat vascular lesions such as
telangiectasias or spider veins, port wine stain birthmarks,
and strawberry hemangiomas. Leg veins up to 2 mm. in
width can be eliminated. What all these conditions have in
common is that they are made up of abnormal blood vessels
in the skin. They all vary in severity for example,
telangiectasias, or broken blood vessels, usually involve
single vessels and are often harmless. Port wine stains, on
the other hand, tend to grow with the patient, usually infants,
darken in color and will never go away if left untreated.
Hemangiomas grow very rapidly after birth but often go
away with time. Some, however may impair vision or
breathing and should be treated before they are allowed to
advance to this stage. In addition, warts, red and raised
scars and inflammatory lesions such as psoriasis can be
treated by targeting their rich vascular supply.
Before and after treatment of spider veigns.
Why is treatment with a laser safe and effective?
The laser is safe and effective because of its unique ability to
selectively treat the blood vessels of a vascular lesion
without adversely affecting the surrounding tissue. Thus, it
will eliminate many lesions while leaving the surrounding skin
intact. In fact, the laser is so safe that it is recommended for
the treatment of infants as young as a few weeks old.
Spider veins of the ankle are best treated with laser
Courtesy of Dr. Thomas E. Rohrer
Is the treatment with the laser painful?
Our laser is equipped with an attached cooling device that
minimizes pain. Most patients tolerate treatments without the
need for anesthesia, although treatments of larger lesions
may be less comfortable.
Before and after for vascular birthmark. Multiple treatments were
needed in this case.
What does the treatment involve?
Treatment with the laser varies from patient to patient
depending on the type of lesion, and the size of the affected
area. Some lesions, like small broken vessels, will require
only a few pulses, while others, like port wine stains, will
require many more. Leg veins will sometimes require more
than one treatment.
Before and after laser for vascular birthmark. These types of
malformations are best treated as early as possible before they grow too
large.
Courtesy of Dany Touma, M.D.
Should certain precautions be taken after the treatment?
Immediately following treatment, some patients find the
application of an ice pack to be soothing to the treated area.
Some patients may require the application of a topical
antibiotic cream or ointment. In addition, care should be
taken in the first few days following treatment to avoid
abrasive skin cleansers and to avoid scrubbing the area. A
bandage or patch may be helpful in preventing abrasion of
the treated area.
Before and after laser for vascular birthmark. These types of
malformations are best treated as early as possible before they grow too large.
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Smooth Beam
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Aesthetics Services
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Laser Resurfacing of Wrinkles and Scars
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Hair Removal for All Skin Types
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Vascular Lesions (including leg veins)
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Pigmented Lesions
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Tattoo Removal
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Botox
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Liposuction
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Fat Transplantation
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Filler Substances
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Sclerotherapy
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Photodynamic Light Therapy
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ThermaCool TC
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Scar Revision
Are there any side effects?
Unlike other methods of treatment, the laser greatly reduces
the potential for scarring or changes in the skin texture. You
will, however, experience some temporary discoloration of
the skin around the treatment site. This blue-grey
discoloration is called purpura and usually resolves in 5-7
days. When treating leg veins, however, the purpura may
last from 7-14 days. Also, depending on your skin type, and
the site and size of lesion treated, some patients may
experience a temporary brown discoloration of the skin for
a few weeks following treatment. It is always transient,
however. These side effects can be often minimized with
proper preoperative and postoperative care. The laser can
be used with much less purpura but additional treatments
might be necessary.
This patient may be best treated with sclerotherapy to treat the blue vein
and laser for the smaller veins.
Before and after laser treatment of leg veins
Courtesy of Thomas Rhorer, M.D.
Are there any other precautions that I should know about?
Optimal results will be achieved with the laser if you are not
suntanned. It is also recommended that you avoid exposing
the treated area to the sun or cover the area with sun block
that has been approved by your physician. Because pigment
is often closer to the surface of the skin than the blood
vessels of a lesion, a lot of pigment, such as in "tanned" or
deeply pigmented skin, may act as a barrier to prevent the
laser light from reaching the lesion. Therefore, the laser is
most effective in lighter skin types.
Before and after laser treatment of abdominal scar. The endpoint is a
flatter, softer, lighter, and less uncomfortable scar.
Courtesy of Dany Touma, M.D.
Are there any alternative treatments for leg veins?
Sclerotherapy is a alternative treatment for leg veins. This
entails use of an injection to induce sclerosis of the
undesired vessel. A series of injections along the path of the
vessel are done, and compression for a few days may be
necessary. Depending on the type of unwanted leg veins,
sclerotherapy may be recommended as an adjunct to or as
an alternative to laser therapy.
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