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  • Why sclerotherapy doesn’t work if done by the wrong doctor
August 8, 2022

Why sclerotherapy doesn’t work if done by the wrong doctor

Why sclerotherapy doesn’t work if done by the wrong doctor

by Vein Clinic / Wednesday, 22 December 2010 / Published in Vein Doctors Group

Patients often come to Vein Doctors Group claiming sclerotherapy does not work for them. What they need to understand when they make that statement is that there is an enormous variation in the skills of the doctors performing sclerotherapy. In some cases the doctors have been (at most) to a weekend course and have had little or no ongoing education. This situation contrasts with those doctors who have gained the highest award possible – Fellowship of The Australasian College of Phlebology. Invariably when patients complain that sclerotherapy has not worked for them, they have not had treatment by an ACP accredited doctor.

The difference in treatment technique is that with the former group of doctors they invariably do not treat the reticular veins. In this case sclerotherapy will either not work or last only a short period of time. The reticular veins are the larger blue / green veins that feed into the spider veins (telangiectasia) and if they are not treated first it is like trying to block a tributary of a river without first blocking the river. The inevitable consequence of this approach is that the spider veins will only go temporarily (if they go at all) and often there is the almost immediate appearance of “bruising” in the area. This bruising is a collection of smaller veins that unfortunately does not improve with time. This is called “matting”. Another cause of why sclerotherapy may not work is if there is an underlying vein that does not work properly (incompetent) and the pressure from this vein is feeding into the surface veins. This situation is only identified by a Duplex ultrasound scan performed before treatment to thoroughly evaluate the condition of the deeper veins.

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4 Comments to “ Why sclerotherapy doesn’t work if done by the wrong doctor”

  1. Anonymous says :
    June 12, 2011 at 8:56 pm

    Hello I have a varicose vein on my left leg and a small one on the right. also have some spider veins. Have had ultrasound guided sclerotherapy in the past but veins eventually came back.I am not overweight and have a reasonably health diet as I am a student
    and cannot afford to be paying too much out of pocket expenseses I would like to ask how much it will cost me to have done and how much will medicare pay.

  2. Dr Paul Varcoe says :
    June 12, 2011 at 11:10 pm

    The first thing to establish is what your problem is and this can only be done by a Duplex Scan of your legs. This will determine which deeper veins are competent and incompetent and what their size is. This will determine what the optimal treatment is.
    All patients need followup surveillance after treatment for at least a year to confirm that the treatment has been totally successful and to enable retreatment if appropriate. This is all covered in your initial cost at The Leg Vein Clinic. I suspect if you
    have had a poor result then either this followup was not done or you should have had Endovenous Laser in the first place. A proper history and examination will enable me to determine what has gone on and enable me to determine the most cost effective solution.
    Without doing this I can’t give you costings. You get most of the initial consultation fee back from Medicare. I suggest you make an appointment on 55381133 and I will sort out your situation for you.

  3. Anonymous says :
    December 26, 2011 at 3:24 pm

    I have had schelotherapy on my thighs a week ago, and one of the places on the back of my right thigh that was injected appears to have a spread of blood or similar underneath the skin as it now looks like a birthmark the size of approx 2 x 20 cent coins.
    Can this be fixed with another treatment?

  4. Dr Paul Varcoe says :
    December 27, 2011 at 12:27 pm

    Hi Julie, if you are my patient then I will of course be more than happy to assist you when I return from holidays and will no doubt achieve a satisfactory outcome. If you are not a patient of mine then I suggest you see the doctor who treated you or if
    that does not resolve your problem then make an appointment via the phone number on the website.

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