Facial Thread Veins

Thread Vein Treatments In Oxford

*Before and after thread vein removal treatments*

What Are Facial Thread Veins?

Facial thread veins, also known as spider veins or broken veins, occur when the superficial veins of the skin become dilated, or enlarged. This results in small, red lines that spread out into a web-shaped form. They can develop anywhere on the body, but they are more common on the face as this area is most exposed to environmental aggressors, such as the sun.

While harmless, broken blood vessels can become a nuisance if they make you self-conscious. The good news is that spider veins are typically treatable. You first need to figure out the underlying cause.

What causes Facial Thread Veins?

Facial Thread Veins can happen to anyone at any age, including children. Your risk factors depend on the particular cause which include:

Hereditary genes - Unfortunately for unknown reasons, some people are just predisposed the broken veins appearing as part of their genetics.
Pregnancy-an increase in pregnancy oestrogen hormones during pregnancy can lead to broken blood vessels. Treatments cannot be provided during pregnancy however, In most people, pregnancy-related spider veins heal on their own after delivery with the drop in oestrogen levels.
Rosacea - This is a medical skin condition relating to a poor skin barrier and subsequent constant skin irritation causing inflammation and facial skin flushing. Facial thread veins often accompany Rosacea, as the body develops new blood vessels to feed the constant facial skin flushing.
Sun exposure - Excessive repeated sun exposure can enlarge your blood vessels and thin the surrounding supportive skin tissues.
Alcohol -Moderate or occasional alcohol consumption can cause your skin to flush due to the enlargement of blood vessels. Binge drinking and heavy alcohol use can eventually lead to spider veins developing.
Smoking - Smoking has a profound effect on thinning the skin and increasing blood pressure. This leads the vessel wall to be under more strain with less supportive skin tissues around them, causing the veins to bulge and become visible on the surface.
Skin irritants and injury - When exposed to an irritant or injury, the skin will respond to heal and protect the area by growing a greater vascular network.

How Do You Treat Facial Thread Veins?

Facial thread veins are relatively easy to treat, depending on the cause, but not without the involvement of a skin specialist. Often, treatment plans will include clinical skincare such as Retinoid’s and high grade sun protection, however these are unlikely to remove thread veins alone. This is usually combined with a course of laser or IPL based treatments. At Lumiere Medispa we advise the Etherea MX IPL:SQ which is an advanced medical IPL device for effective clearance of facial thread veins.