Varicose Vein Treatment with Endovenous Laser Ablation

Endovenous laser ablation treatment (EVLT) is sometimes simply called “laser ablation.” It works by inserting a tiny fiber through a needle into the damaged vein. Once in place, a laser is activated, and as the fiber is removed, it heats and seals off the vein.

EVLT is minimally invasive and only requires local anesthetic to numb the area where the fiber is placed. The procedure takes about an hour. The goal of EVLT is to close off varicose veins, reduce symptoms, and reduce the chances of vein disease complications like blood clots.

What to expect during treatment

Before your procedure, your veins are “mapped” using ultrasound. This allows the doctor to locate varicose veins that aren’t visible from the outside. During the procedure, a local anesthetic is injected into your leg and a laser fiber is inserted. Your doctor will use ultrasound to position the laser fiber into the problem vein. Once in place, the laser is activated and pulled out of the vein. This causes the vein to seal and close.

 When the procedure is complete, you will have a bandage placed on the incision site and a compression stocking placed on the treated leg. You can resume normal activities right away. Full results may take weeks to months to become apparent.

Benefits of EVLT

There are many benefits to having EVLT over traditional vein surgery:

• No general anesthesia required
• Takes about an hour
• Low complication rate
• Less painful than surgery
• No recovery period

Learn about other treatments for varicose veins here.

We treat the following: