Facial thread vein FAQ

What are facial thread veins? Can facial thread veins be treated? What treatments do you do? What are the after-effects of treatment? Is the treatment effective?

What are facial thread veins?

Facial thread veins are tiny blood vessels that lie just under the facial skin. The vast majority of facial thread veins have no direct cause, but thread veins are often associated with things like ageing, sun and environmental damage, smoking and alcohol.
They can also be associated with other medical conditions such as high blood pressure, liver disease, pregnancy or rosacea.
Facial vessels can also be benign vascular tumours such as cherry angiomas or spider angiomas

Can facial thread veins be treated?

In most cases, yes they can. However, it is important to rule out any underlying medical causes so that these can be addressed.

What treatments do you do?

Facial thread veins can be treated very effectively by electrocautery or laser. We have both modalities here at The Minster Clinic, and will advise the most appropriate method at your consultation.

What are the after-effects of treatment?

The face or treated areas can appear quite red for a week or two, and feel quite hot for 2-3 hours after treatment. The actual treatment is slightly uncomfortable, but not painful to the point of requiring any local anaesthetic.
Very occasionally, there may be some micro-crusting, but this is not at all common.
Risks or complications include ulceration of the skin and scarring. However, we start with very low energies, which means that this adverse effect is very unlikely to occur. There is a small risk of hyper pigmentation with darker skin types.
It is important to clean the skin well and to protect the skin with SpF 50 sun block and barrier creams following treatment.

Is the treatment effective?

In short, yes. We would generally see a reduction in the density of thread veins to the order of 70-80% after one treatment. It is unlikely that all thread veins will be removed, but with further treatments, more vessels will respond.
The majority of patients are happy after one treatment. However, a small proportion may go on to have two or three treatments.
Very occasionally more treatments are needed for very stubborn veins.

Facial thread veins price guide *

AreaCost
Single vessel, small cluster of veins in a spotfrom £250
Small area (e.g. around nose)from £275
Larger area (e.g. both cheeks)from £350
Both cheeks and nosefrom £450

* 50% off subsequent sessions up to a maximum of two further treatments if informed within 3 months of last treatment. Treatment needs to be booked in within 6 months of initial patch test. If a further patch test is required due to delayed booking, this is will be charged at our normal rate of £125