V-Beam Laser Treatment
For Face Veins, Rosacea and other Vascular Lesions
The V-Beam laser is a pulsed dye laser that can successfully treat:
- Face veins (telangiectasias)
- Facial, neck and chest redness
- Rosacea
- Hemangiomas (large and small red bumps or growths)
- Red birthmarks (port wine stains)
- Other vascular lesions, including venous lakes (blue spots, usually found on lips)
- Scars
The V-Beam produces an intense but gentle burst of light that selectively destroys the blood vessels within the treated area, without damaging the surrounding tissue. Red veins respond better than blue veins and smaller vessels respond sooner than larger ones. While one treatment will produce some improvement, two to four treatments will probably be needed to achieve the best results. Treatments are usually performed four weeks apart.
Do not apply any anesthetic (numbing) gels. Treatments are well tolerated without them. The feeling has been described as being snapped by a rubber band or as a slight stinging sensation. Following treatment the area may feel warm or sting slightly like a sunburn.
Improvement can usually be seen immediately. Immediately following the treatment however the area may appear red or bruised and possibly slightly swollen. Swelling usually resolves within 1 – 5 days while bruising or redness may last 7-14 days. Crusting can rarely develop when port wine stains (red birthmarks) are treated. As with many lasers, color changes (darkening or lightening of skin color) can occasionally occur in darker skin types as can scarring (in less than 1% of cases.)
For important social events, treatment should not be done within 14 days before the event.
