GentleYAG™ Leg Vein Removal

At Laserway, Cosmetic Laser Clinics, Northern Ireland, we can remove unwanted leg veins using the fantastic GentleYAG™ technology.

What are thread veins?
Thread veins (or telangiectasia) are small superficial red, purple or blue veins which appear anywhere on the body, but most commonly on the face and legs.

Thread veins occur when the vein dilates and become large enough to be visible through the skin. These are classified according to their appearance as linear, branching or spider telangiectasia.

How does it work?
Laser light is absorbed by the haemoglobin in the surface vein and is converted into heat. This heat then destroys the protein in the wall of the vein and as a result it will gradually fade and disappear. The light is harmless to the surrounding tissues and cannot affect any deeper veins, as the light will simply disperse after a certain depth.

Which veins can be treated?
The veins must not be raised in any way. If that is the case they require medical treatment through your GP, we also regret that we can not treat varicose veins in our clinic and would therefore recommend sclerotherapy treatment (please discuss this with your doctor).

Darker more purple coloured veins tend to be deeper and may require more treatment than pink or red veins.

How many treatments do I need?
This really depends on the site and severity of the veins; however, an average of 1-6 treatments will be needed for maximum reduction. An interval of 4-6 weeks between treatments is recommended.

How long does the treatment take?
A full and detailed consultation is carried out before treatment, which will take 30-40 minutes. The treatment itself will take at least one hour depending on the number of veins requiring treatment.

Does it hurt?
Clients have described it as similar to an elastic band snapping on the skin and the warm sensation that follows can last several minutes. We apply ice immediately after the treatment to cool the area and to try to keep swelling at bay.

Are there any special precautions before and after treatment?
The treatment cannot be carried out on skin types 5 and 6 and the area being treated must be as pale as possible.

We recommend applying an S.P.F. of 30 or above for 2 months before the treatment and continued daily use for maximum skin protection from sun and wind.

The week before your treatment we also request that you avoid using ibuprofen type products or aspirin which both have an effect on the consistency of the blood.

Smoking also has this effect so we ask that you refrain from smoking for at least 4 hours before and after treatment.

After the treatment you can expect to see some swelling in the area which may last from 2-4 days. This may be accompanied by redness and in rare occasions bruising.

We recommend no heat on the area for 48hrs after treatment and regular application of cool swabs or aloe vera if it feels uncomfortable.