Varicose veins are rarely absent from older legs.

Conventional surgical treatment is painful and intrusive, requiring an incision into the groin, plus multiple incisions in the legs.

However, a new laser procedure means only a tiny incision is needed. EndoVenous Laser Treatment (EVLT) is carried out under local anaesthetic and takes only two hours in hospital.

A woman who underwent the treatment, writes :

First, they measured me for the stocking they were going to put on my leg afterwards, which would minimise any bruising.

Once in theater, another ultrasound scan was done of my leg to find the best place to enter the vein. [The surgeon] marked the point with a surgical marker pen and I was given a local anaesthetic, so I couldn’t feel anything. Then I was placed on my side. [He] made a small incision, level with my knee, and threaded a guide wire and then the laser through my vein.

I couldn’t see what was happening as I had drapes over me. I was given a pair of goggles to protect my eyes from the laser, then the lights were switched off and the laser switched on. The procedure took just a few minutes. Then, when the vein was sealed, [the surgeon] switched the laser off. Lastly, he removed the wire containing the laser and put a sticky skin fastener over the incision.

I then got off the operating table and walked to the recovery bay. I’d arrived at 12.30pm and was ready to leave two hours later. Initially, my leg was numb, but feeling in it returned after an hour or so.

It’s easy to imagine a lot of demand for this new treatment.