Inside these veins, a one-way valve helps blood return to the upper parts of the body. If these valves begin to leak, and no longer operate as they should, blood begins to pool in the legs due to the force of gravity. When blood collects in this way, the veins become enlarged, discoloured, and can cause aching in the affected areas – these are known as varicose veins.

There are two options to ‘ablate’ or close your varicose veins. They both aim to close the faulty pathway that isn’t draining your leg correctly and re-route the flow through your good veins to improve the drainage, or venous circulation. For patients, this improves blood flow and reduces the pain and swelling caused by varicose veins. As a leading varicose vein clinic Auckland citizens have come to trust, we at Palm Clinic are always looking at new procedures to provide the best treatment possible.

Radiofrequency Ablation (RFA) uses radiofrequency energy to do this, where as Endovenous Laser Ablation uses a laser at a specific wavelength.

Research shows that they both achieve very similar results, however the RFA is shown to produce less pain and bruising after the procedure. For individuals who have spent considerable time dealing with aching pain in the legs, swelling, sores or skin ulcers, or inflamed veins, RFA treatment can promote faster recovery and increased safety during the procedure.

Due to this, Palm Clinic has recently introduced Radiofrequency Ablation as our primary way of treating varicose veins. It is considered the the ‘gold-standard’ approach by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence. If you’d like to see RFA in action for yourself, you can watch a quick educational video that covers the entire procedure.

The benefits of Palm Clinic’s RFA treatment:

• Gold-standard approach to treatment of varicose veins
• Clinically proven to be less painful than Endovenous Laser Ablation
• Minimally invasive technique
• Walk in/Walk out
• Fibre advanced under ultrasound guidance
• No general anaesthetic or surgery required
• Local anaesthetic to numb and protect surrounding tissue and compress vein against the fibre
• Radiofrequency energy applied closing the vein in segments as the fibre is withdrawn
• Approved by FDA (Food and Drug Administration) in USA
• Closes faulty varicose vein pathways, diverting blood flow through good veins
• Improved venous circulation and resolution of symptoms
• Closed vein is cleverly absorbed by your body over a few months
• Covered by Southern Cross Medical Insurance when medical necessity criteria are met
• Covered by most other Health Insurance companies in New Zealand.

If you or a loved one are experiencing pain due to untreated varicose veins, call Palm Clinic today to discuss the next steps toward treatment - improving blood flow and vein health is now easier and less painful than ever before.

Contact Palm Clinic to discuss varicose vein treatment in Auckland or schedule a consultation.