Brief overview
- Causes and risk factors: Congenital weakness of the connective tissue is often the cause of spider veins; in addition, women and people who stand or sit a lot, smoke or drink alcohol suffer more frequently from the red veins
- Prevention: Exercise, alternating showers, massages, a healthy diet, wearing compression stockings.
- Symptoms: Light red to dark blue veins shine through the skin.
- Diagnosis: Medical history, physical examination
- Course and prognosis: Usually no symptoms, only in rare cases they indicate a disease of the deeper veins
What are spider veins?
Spider veins are small, superficial veins that shimmer reddish or bluish through the skin. They develop when blood pools in the affected area. In most cases, spider veins are harmless and at most a cosmetic problem. In some people, however, they indicate diseases of the deeper veins.
Spider veins: causes and risk factors
There are various causes of spider veins. For example, heredity probably plays a role in their development. Also a permanently increased pressure in the vessels, such as high blood pressure, is often responsible for the development of spider veins. The following factors, for example, also have a favorable effect:
- Frequent standing and sitting
- Alcohol and nicotine consumption
High blood pressure and lack of exercise promote spider veins via blood stasis in the veins. Learn more about this and other risk factors below:
Blood stasis in the veins
When blood backs up in the veins, the walls of the blood vessels usually expand – this promotes spider veins. Patients with high blood pressure (hypertension) therefore have a higher risk of venous diseases such as spider veins.
Alcohol and nicotine
The stimulants alcohol and nicotine have the potential to cause permanent damage to blood vessels. Nicotine releases the neurotransmitter vasopressin, which constricts blood vessels. Excessive alcohol consumption often leads to vasodilatation. Therefore, increased spider veins on the face (nose), but also on the fingers or toes, may be a first indication of harmful alcohol consumption.
Pregnancy and hormonal contraception
If a young mother loses weight drastically after giving birth, this also contributes to a change in the connective tissue structure – and the superficial veins expand as a result.
In addition, hormonal contraceptives such as the pill promote spider veins: the hormones supplied contribute to a weakness of the connective tissue.
Spider veins: Prevention
There are some measures to improve blood circulation if you are prone to spider veins. These include:
Regular exercise such as cycling, running or swimming strengthens the calf muscles. These muscles play an important role in pumping the blood from the veins back to the heart so that it does not become congested in the legs. In addition, exercise stimulates circulation and improves blood flow to the skin, which also counteracts the formation of (new) spider veins.
Alternating showers and massages
Healthy diet
A balanced diet also promotes connective tissue with good blood circulation. Eat fruits and vegetables daily. Limit your consumption of fat and meat. Drink at least two liters of water or unsweetened tea daily to prevent the blood from thickening. Avoid sweetened foods and drinks as much as possible. Instead, reach for healthy snacks like nuts or dried fruit.
Compression stockings
Herbal products
There are various herbal products, for example in the form of creams, capsules or tinctures, which may have a vein-protective effect. One example is vine leaf extract… There are various vine leaf extract preparations for poultices or infusions freely available on the market.
Spider veins: symptoms
Spider veins appear in the form of light red to dark blue veins, vascular trees or spots. They are called spider veins because these fine vessels resemble branched twigs or brooms made of tiny twig branches. They usually appear isolated on a vein, without affecting deeper veins. Usually, spider veins do not cause pain or other discomfort. However, some people find them disturbing for aesthetic reasons.
Spider veins on the face
Even if they are visually similar: Spider veins on the face and spider veins on the leg are two different things. In the case of dilated veins on the face, physicians speak of so-called telangiectasias. These are dilated small capillary vessels of the skin that appear like a network.
Spider veins: examinations and diagnosis
Spider veins are usually very easy to diagnose, as they are visible to the naked eye and have a typical reticular course. The right contact person regarding spider veins is a specialist in phlebology, i.e. an expert in vascular diseases.
In an initial consultation, the doctor will take the patient’s medical history (anamnesis) by asking various questions, such as:
- How old are you?
- Do you suffer from a disease of the connective tissue?
- Do you experience a feeling of tension and heaviness in your legs in the evening?
- For women: Are you or have you recently been pregnant?
- Do you have family members with spider veins?
- Do spider veins bother you or do you suffer from them?
If the doctor wants to be sure and rule out deeper varicose veins, he performs an ultrasound examination (sonography) or an X-ray examination of the vessels (angiography). This allows the blood flow in the deeper veins to be assessed.
Spider veins: Treatment
Spider veins can often be covered well with make-up and thus optically concealed.
You can learn more about the various methods of treating spider veins and how sufferers treat them themselves in the article Removing spider veins.
