What it is
Vascular laser delivers wavelengths selectively absorbed by oxyhemoglobin in red blood cells. The vessel heats from within, the walls collapse, and the vessel is cleared by the body over days to weeks. The choice between 532 nm KTP (best for superficial red vessels) and 1064 nm Nd:YAG (deeper or bluish vessels) is per lesion.
How we approach it
The first visit is a mapping exercise: which lesions are you bothered by, and is each one a vascular target or a different problem entirely? Cherry angiomas, distinct nose-side telangiectasias, and post-rosacea capillaries respond well. Diffuse rosacea-pattern redness without distinct vessels is better treated with Laser Genesis or IPL.
Most discrete lesions clear in one to three sessions. Patients with many vessels may need spaced sessions across several months.
What to expect
The session feels like brief warm pinches at each vessel. Treated lesions often darken transiently — minutes to hours — before clearing. Bruising along the path of larger vessels can persist a week or two.
Sun avoidance two weeks before and after. Daily SPF.
Candidacy
Best for patients with discrete visible facial capillaries or vascular lesions. Not for diffuse redness without distinct vessels, for leg veins (sclerotherapy is the right tool), during pregnancy, or with active sunburn.