Sometimes it helps to think outside the box. A young patient was referred to me for a “lump” on her left upper lip. She had seen another plastic surgeon, who recommended a wedge resection (removing the entire lesion and surrounding tissue). This would have resulted in a potentially visible scar between her nose and lips, and possibly cause a significant amount of bleeding, as the lump was a vascular malformation (most likely a hemangioma).

Although this is a knee-jerk reaction for any lesion (let’s just cut it out), I decided to do further studies. A high resolution ultrasound was performed by the radiologist, which showed the lesion to have no major feeding vessels. This made the treatment much simpler, since I did not have to worry about any major blood vessels complicating the procedure.

I chose to inject the lesion with a sclerosing agent, similar to spider veins on the legs. This is not a new technique, but its use for treatment of hemangioma of the lip is not common either. After the injection and two months of waiting, the lesion had shrunk enough so the entire hemangioma could be removed under local anesthesia, and the incision was small and kept inside the lip, to prevent any visible scars.

This treatment, although somewhat unconventional, resulted in a nice cosmetic result and a happy patient.

Michael A. Jazayeri, M.D. is a board certified plastic surgeon with over 12 years of experience. His office is located in Orange County, California. To schedule a complimentary consultation, please call 714-834-0101.

Many of my friends are putting off or delaying “luxury” activities.  However, this does not mean we have to die either!

Many of us, especially women, suffer from spider veins (telangectasia) and varicose veins on the thighs and legs.  Many are embarrassed by them, but do not realize treatment is available.

I prefer to inject the spider or varicose vein with a sclerosing agent (which causes scarring inside the wall of the vein, causing it to scar down).  I have been performing this technique for many years and have had great success with it. 

This is an outpatient procedure and does not require pain medication or anesthesia.  The patient can drive home after the injections are completed.  The only necessary requirement is to wear a support panty hose for 72 hours after the procedure. 

There may be bruising at the site of injection and the final result may take 1-2 months.

If you have very large varicose veins which are painful and bleed, you are not a good candidate for this procedure.

The cost is very reasonable.  The treatment can cost as low as $50.  The usual range is $400-500, depending on the amount of injections required.

I have attached a before and after photo to illustrate the effectiveness of this procedure.

If you like to schedule a complimentary consultation with Dr. Jazayeri, please call 714-834-0101.

Michael A. Jazayeri, M.D. is a board certified plastic surgeon with over 10 years of experience.  His office is centrally located in Orange County, in the city of Santa Ana.