Spider Vein Treatment Cost 2019
Do you have red clusters of blood vessels on the surface of your skin? These spider veins look hideous and cause immense self-consciousness and social anxiety. They may also be indicative of underlying venous insufficiency, in which case they can also be medically dangerous.
Most people avoid spider vein treatments because of two misconceptions — first, that spider veins are completely harmless; second, that spider vein treatments are extremely expensive. So allow us to debunk those myths.
First, spider veins may be harmless, but they can also be indicative of venous insufficiency, in which case they can lead to complications like leg ulcers, skin discoloration, skin diseases, and even deep vein thrombosis. Second, spider vein treatment cost may range from $0 (if it’s covered by insurance plans) to $3,000 and more.
The cost of varicose veins and spider veins treatment depends on the following factors:
- If the treatment is medically necessary or if it’s merely cosmetic.
- If the spider veins are caused by underlying vein disease.
- If your vein clinic is affiliated with major insurance providers. Luckily for you, our vein treatment center provides treatments covered by most insurance plans.
In this article, we give you a detailed overview of spider vein treatment cost 2019 and which treatments are covered by most insurance providers.
Sclerotherapy Cost 2019
When it comes to spider veins, sclerotherapy is the most effective and most popular treatment. This is a minimally invasive and non-surgical procedure in which the vein doctor injects a solution called sclerosant into your spider veins. This solution fuses the vein walls and essentially renders them into scar tissues. The accumulated blood automatically moves to healthier veins and the scar tissues gradually get absorbed by the body and disappear.
Sclerotherapy is the best spider vein treatment because it’s minimally invasive, non-surgical, and causes minimal pain or discomfort. This is also an in-office procedure that concludes within 30 minutes with no recovery downtime. As such, you can get this procedure done during your work lunch break and then get back to your regular schedule with no interruption. The procedure can reduce up to 80% of your spider veins in a single session.
Is Sclerotherapy Spider Vein Treatment Covered by Insurance Plans?
The national average cost of a single sclerotherapy session is approximately $700. Unfortunately, however, sclerotherapy is not covered by insurance plans.
Sclerotherapy is a procedure used to treat spider veins, but not the underlying vein disease. It can remove the surface symptoms, but not the actual disease. Sclerotherapy is either used if you don’t have vein disease at all or it’s used after the primary vein disease has been treated.
As such, sclerotherapy is considered to be cosmetic treatment and not deemed medically necessary. That’s why sclerotherapy is not covered by insurance plans.
Varicose Veins and Spider Veins Removal Cost
As previously mentioned, spider veins may or may not be caused by underlying vein disease. Venous insufficiency is a dangerous medical condition in which your vein valves malfunction, which causes blood to flow back and pool around your leg veins. As more blood accumulates in your legs, the veins dilate and appear on the surface of your skin as varicose veins and spider veins.
If you don’t treat venous insufficiency, it can lead to serious complications like severe bleeding, skin diseases, skin discoloration, leg ulcers, and deep vein thrombosis. When you visit a vein treatment center, the vein doctor will run diagnostic tests to determine if your spider veins are caused by venous insufficiency. Generally speaking, treatments for vein disease are covered by most insurance plans because they’re medically necessary.
The following are the top varicose vein removal procedures that are covered by insurance plans.
Radiofrequency Ablation
Radiofrequency Ablation is a procedure in which the vein doctor uses heat energy or thermal energy to irritate the saphenous vein and collapse it, thereby restoring proper blood circulation to the heart.
During the procedure, the vein doctor inserts a catheter into the diseased saphenous vein under ultrasound guidance. Once the catheter is in place, the vein doctor activates it to generate heat energy to irritate the vein walls and collapse it. The accumulated blood reroutes to healthier veins.
This is a minimally invasive and non-surgical procedure that causes minimal pain or discomfort. It also carries a negligible risk of side effects and the entire procedure concludes within an hour with no recovery downtime. This procedure may cost over $3,000. However, since it is covered by insurance plans, you don’t have to pay all of it out of pocket.
Endovenous Laser Treatment
Endovenous laser treatment is yet another minimally invasive and non-surgical procedure with minimal risk of side effects. During the procedure, the vein doctor inserts a catheter and laser fiber into the diseased saphenous vein under ultrasound guidance. Once the laser fiber is in place, the vein doctor activates it to generate laser energy that destroys the affected saphenous vein. The accumulated blood reroutes to healthier veins.
This procedure may cost between $2,000 and $7,000. However, it’s covered by most insurance plans because it’s a medically necessary procedure. So you don’t have to pay for it all out of pocket. However, this procedure isn’t as popular as radiofrequency ablation because it causes more post-procedural discomfort.
Schedule an Appointment with a Board Certified Vein Doctor
At VIP Medical Group, we have some of the world’s best board-certified vein doctors who can treat your spider veins with minimal discomfort and using the best minimally-invasive procedures. We are also affiliated with Medicare so we can provide treatments covered by most insurance plans to reduce your out-of-pocket burden. For more information, please schedule an appointment with a board-certified vein doctor today.