What are the disadvantages of sclerotherapy?

Although the functional results of successful sclerotherapy are equivalent to those when varicose veins are removed surgically, sclerotherapy of large or very large varicose veins usually needs more than one treatment session at the doctor’s office. If treatment is stopped too soon, the reaction from sticking the vein walls together may not be sufficient to close the vein off permanently. It usually only requires one (stripping) operation to remove large varicose veins. However, smaller side branch veins may still need to be eliminated by sclerotherapy at a later treatment session.

As with all methods of treatment, including surgery, new varicose veins may develop later. This is due to the inborn connective tissue weakness, which cannot be cured.