What Are Vascular Lesions?

Vascular lesions are visible, dilated blood vessels close to the skin’s surface — commonly seen as facial thread veins (telangiectasia), spider veins, cherry angiomas, spider naevi, and the persistent redness associated with rosacea. They’re harmless from a health perspective, but for many clients they’re a genuine source of self-consciousness, particularly on fair or sensitive skin where they can become a prominent, permanent-feeling feature.

How Laser Vascular Lesion Removal Works

Laser vascular treatment works by targeting haemoglobin — the pigment in red blood cells — within the unwanted vessel. The laser energy is absorbed by the blood inside the vessel and converted to heat, causing the vessel walls to gently coagulate and collapse. The body’s own immune system then clears away the treated vessel over the following weeks, much like the natural healing process after a bruise, while surrounding healthy skin and blood vessels are left unaffected. Using a long-pulse Nd:YAG laser allows treatment to reach deeper vessels than many other technologies, addressing not just the visible vessel but often part of its underlying feeding network — supporting more lasting results.

What We Can Treat

• Facial thread veins and telangiectasia (cheeks, nose, chin)
• Spider veins, spider naevi and spider angiomas
• Cherry angiomas (senile angiomas)
• Venous lakes — soft, dark blue-purple raised spots most commonly found on the lips or ears, caused by a dilated vein close to the skin’s surface, particularly common over 40
• Facial redness and rosacea-associated telangiectasia
• Leg telangiectasia (surface thread veins) and reticular veins

Specialist & Selected-Case Vascular Lesions

A smaller number of vascular lesions can also respond to Nd:YAG treatment, but need a more individual, cautious approach — either because another laser wavelength is usually the better first choice, or because proper assessment matters more than usual before any cosmetic treatment:

• Small venous malformations — superficial, well-defined venous malformations can respond well in selected cases, but larger or deeper malformations need specialist vascular assessment (sometimes including imaging) before any cosmetic treatment is considered, since some are associated with broader vascular conditions.
• Poikiloderma of Civatte (the mottled red-brown discolouration and fine vessels often seen on the sides of the neck and chest from sun exposure) — this is a genuinely excellent match for treatment at Eva Clinic, with two well-evidenced technologies available in-house. A controlled study using long-pulse, KTP frequency-doubled 532nm laser — the exact technology available at Eva Clinic via the Biotek Italia long-pulse KTP 532nm system — found an average 74% improvement on the neck and 68% on the chest after a course of four monthly treatments. IPL (via your CPL/IPL Biotek Italia system) is separately one of the most established, widely studied treatments for this same condition. Between the two, this is a strong, genuinely evidence-matched offering rather than a compromise option.
• Angiofibroma — small, benign, reddish-brown facial bumps that can respond to vascular laser treatment. Important: when multiple angiofibromas appear on the face, particularly from a young age, this can occasionally be associated with an underlying genetic condition (tuberous sclerosis) — in these cases, we’d always recommend a GP or dermatologist assessment first, before any cosmetic treatment, to rule this out.
• Port-wine stains — these are congenital vascular birthmarks. Pulsed dye laser (PDL) remains the most established, widely studied treatment overall, particularly for classic flat, pink lesions — but you have two genuinely strong alternatives in-house. KTP 532nm (via your Biotek Italia long-pulse system) is a well-published option for port-wine stains, particularly flatter or paler lesions where its wavelength suits well. Long-pulsed 1064nm Nd:YAG, meanwhile, has shown meaningful clearance in retrospective studies for darker, thicker or more hypertrophic lesions, where its deeper tissue penetration is a real advantage. Between KTP 532nm and Nd:YAG, you have technology suited to a genuinely wide range of port-wine stain presentations — the right choice depends on the specific lesion’s colour, thickness and prior treatment history, assessed individually at consultation rather than assumed. Very extensive, thick or previously treatment-resistant presentations may still be best served by referral to a specialist vascular birthmark service.

A Note on Pyogenic Granuloma

Pyogenic granuloma is a fast-growing, benign overgrowth of vascular tissue — but it’s important to be direct about this one: pyogenic granuloma can occasionally look identical to amelanotic melanoma (a rare form of skin cancer that lacks typical pigmentation), and there are documented cases in the medical literature where a lesion assumed to be a pyogenic granuloma turned out, after removal and pathology, to be melanoma. Because of this, we don’t treat presumed pyogenic granulomas without proper prior assessment — any rapidly growing, bleeding, or unusual vascular lesion should always be seen by a GP or dermatologist for assessment before any cosmetic treatment is considered, regardless of how “typical” it looks. This isn’t a formality; it genuinely protects your safety.

What to Expect

Sensation is often described as a brief, warm pinprick with each laser pulse, and cooling is used throughout for comfort. Treatment is quick — often just minutes for smaller areas — with no significant downtime, though some redness or mild bruising in the treated area is common initially and typically fades within days to a couple of weeks. Simple, isolated vessels are often resolved in a single session; more extensive or complex vascular concerns may need two to three sessions, spaced around four weeks apart, for optimal results.

Who Is It Suitable For?

This treatment suits anyone bothered by visible facial or leg thread veins, spider veins, cherry angiomas, or vascular redness who wants a non-surgical, needle-free option. It’s not intended for treating true varicose veins (larger, bulging veins often associated with underlying venous insufficiency) — these are a different clinical concern and, where relevant, we’ll discuss referring you to an appropriate vascular specialist rather than treating them here.