Damaged veins can occur anywhere on the body, but when damaged veins occur on the face, it can be especially embarrassing and frustrating to deal with. Small spider veins and broken capillaries on the nose, cheeks, forehead, or chin are nearly impossible to cover with makeup, and cause a face to look older than its years, or add a permanent rosy appearance where it’s not wanted. When these veins aren’t damaged, they’re nearly invisible, but for those with abnormal veins or venous damage, they can expand and show through the surface of the skin.
What causes this damage? There are a few contributing factors. Too much exposure to the sun over the years can harm the skin and the veins in so many ways. Pregnancy is also a culprit, depending on the woman, with many hormonal changes affecting the skin and veins throughout the body . Genetics plays a huge role in vein damage probability, with people being more susceptible to developing facial veins if a parent or grandparent suffered the same.
While damaged facial veins are typically more apparent and occur most often after middle age once the skin begins to thin out and lose much of its natural collagen, patients of all ages may develop obvious facial veins. Small thread veins that show up on the face may actually be a sign of a condition known as rosacea, which can result from an overuse of facial creams that contain steroids.
Treating Facial Veins
To help treat facial veins yourself, seek out a good concealer to wear beneath makeup. Using an artificial tanner has helped to make the appearance of damaged veins less obvious for some patients. It’s important to avoid alcohol, hot drinks and spicy foods, all of which can further aggravate and inflame the veins making them more apparent.
Medical treatments are available to treat and repair damaged facial veins. Some of these treatments include laser treatments and micro-sclerotherapy. Micro-sclerotherapy begins with injecting the damaged veins with chemicals that cause the walls of the veins to stick together and then slowly disappear naturally over the next couple of weeks. For many patients who choose this option, more than one treatment is needed to see optimal results, but the results usually show significant improvement.
Laser treatments are very successful at targeting and ridding the skin of vein damage but this treatment option isn’t available for those with darker skin because the pigments of dark skin often block the laser beam. High intensity light treatments are also very effective, causing the veins to coagulate and clear.
If you’re interested in learning more about the treatment options available to you to clear up your facial veins, we encourage you to give us a call today.