How to Help Your Child Heal After Their Venous Sclerotheapy

Venous sclerotherapy procedures can be worrying for parents. While the treatment is usually quick and the risks are low, some parents worry about what recovery will be like. If you're concerned, it's important to note that recovering from sclerotherapy is generally not a difficult process. While there will be some soreness and your child will need to rest for a few days, they should be back to their normal routine within a few weeks. Here are a few ways to speed up the healing process that you can keep in mind before contacting a vascular surgeon to perform the treatment.

Keep Them Hydrated

During sclerotherapy, the doctor carrying out the procedure will inject your child with a medicine called a sclerosing agent. After the agent has irritated the veins to shrink them, your child's kidneys will flush the drug out of their bloodstream. This can cause your child to pass dark urine after their procedure. If you notice this, make sure you monitor your child's hydration in the first few days after surgery, encouraging them to drink a healthy amount of water. Keeping hydrated will help your child's kidneys do their job, transporting the waste agent out of the body.

Offer Them Pain Medication

While sclerotherapy should shrink your child's veins over the coming months, you and your child are likely to notice swelling in the area before that happens. Swelling tends to last for a few weeks, and most doctors will prescribe you a course of children's ibuprofen to help. While your child may not complain of pain, as sclerotherapy recovery is not usually painful, they may find the swelling and tightness uncomfortable. If so, you can offer them this ibuprofen. Alongside reducing pain, ibuprofen also helps bring down swelling, which can make your child more comfortable over the first few weeks of recovery. Remember to follow the guidelines on the medicine carefully, as too much ibuprofen can lead to dangerous side effects like seizures and breathing difficulties.

Try Using a Compression Garment

Usually, children leave their sclerotherapy procedure with their treatment area bandaged. This compresses the veins to prevent them from filling with blood again, encouraging shrinkage post-treatment. At your doctor's discretion, you may find it helpful to use your child's usual compression garment instead of this bandage. In the first few days or weeks after surgery, the garment may be too tight due to swelling. However, it should soon fit. When it does, using it can help your child get back into their normal routine and back into typical exercise, which prevents stiffness in the treatment area. Remember to follow your doctor's guidance on how long to use the garment for. 

Avoid Warmth

If your child does have discomfort, it's important not to treat it with warmth. Warm temperatures make the veins swell, increasing the discomfort and impeding the shrinkage process. This also means you should avoid hot baths. Instead, opt for comfortably cool water. If your child insists on a warmer bath, make sure you keep bathing brief to avoid the treatment site heating up.

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