Varicose vein treatment at Spire Cardiff Hospital

At Spire Cardiff Hospital, we’re proud to be the largest, modern provider of private hospital care in Wales.

If varicose veins are causing you pain or complications, or you’d like them removed for cosmetic reasons, we have a choice of consultants who can provide a treatment that’s personalised to your needs.

We offer fast access to consultations and treatments, in a clean, comfortable environment.

Your consultant will recommend a treatment based on the type of varicose veins you have, your general health and your desired outcome.

We have a range of treatments available. All have their own potential benefits and risks which your consultant will discuss with you.

Coming into hospital

Spire Cardiff Hospital is located a short distance from Junction 30 of the M4 and is well signposted. There’s free parking available for you and your visitors.

Meeting your consultant

Your appointment will take place in one of our consultation rooms. Your consultant will discuss:

• Your symptoms or reasons for wanting treatment
• Your general health and medical history
• If they recommend any additional tests or scans to help plan your treatment
• Your treatment and recovery plan
• What the treatment involves, along with potential benefits and risks
• The anaesthetic you’ll require

You may also need a pre-operative assessment before going ahead with treatment. This is to ensure you're fit and well enough for surgery.

When you arrive at hospital, your consultant and a nurse will get you ready for your treatment. Subject to which procedure and anaesthetic you’re having, it will take place in an operating theatre or a day surgery theatre.

Treatment usually takes between half an hour to an hour. However, it may take longer if you’re having both legs or many veins treated.

Anaesthetic

So that you won’t feel any pain during the procedure, you’ll have either:

• A general anaesthetic – where you’ll be asleep
• A local anaesthetic – so the area being treated will be numb

For ligation and stripping, which is a surgical procedure to treat varicose veins, you’ll probably have general anaesthetic. All other treatments are usually performed using local anaesthetic.

After your treatment

Once your consultant has finished, you’ll be able to relax in an ambulatory care unit until you’re ready to go home – usually a few hours after your procedure.

If you’ve had general anaesthetic, you may need to stay overnight. If you do, you’ll stay in one of our private, en-suite rooms which have:

• TV
• Window
• Armchair
• En-suite

Most people can resume normal activities immediately after varicose vein surgery. For ligation and stripping, you may need to rest and take some time off work before gently returning back to your normal routine.

Your consultant may advise that you wear compression stockings for up to a week.

You’ll return to the hospital for a check-up appointment after your procedure, so we can ensure that you’re healing as expected and your veins have improved.

Although everyone’s different and you should always follow your consultant’s advice, here’s a typical recovery timeline: