You can help prevent spider and varicose veins by improving your circulation. Your doctor may recommend any of the following: Prevention In addition, new techniques are continually evolving, so you should ask your doctor about all of your treatment options. There are things you can do to help prevent new spider veins and treat existing ones. If you have spider veins, there are treatments available that can reduce or clear them. They are rarely painful but can make people feel self-conscious about their appearance. Women are more susceptible than men to spider veins. However, these spider veins typically appear on your face and around your fingernails and toenails rather than on your legs. While many otherwise healthy people get spider veins, spider veins can occasionally be a sign of a more serious underlying condition. Unlike varicose veins, another type of damaged vein that often appears on your legs, spider veins do not create ropy bulges under the skin. They are most commonly reddish but can also be blue or purple, and they often whiten when you press on them. Spider veins most frequently appear on your legs but can also show up on your face, forearms, or hands.

They often resemble tiny webs or tree branches. The technical term for spider veins is telangiectasia, but they take their more familiar name from their appearance.

Spider veins are small clusters of dilated or broken veins that are visible under your skin. Sun damage or injury may also cause spider veins. Spider veins are often caused by normal aging, wear-and-tear, and changing hormones.