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The blood vessels that are seen on the face are usually bright red. Very occasionally, they can be blue or purple and can be enlarged or bulging. However the vast majority of facial thread veins are bright red, very thin and when you push on them with a finger they blanch, filling almost immediately afterwards.
Although they are called “thread veins”, they are usually not veins at all. More usually they are dilated capillary networks and they are usually more arterial than venous. This means that the blood inside them is more oxygenated and therefore brighter red and is often at a higher pressure, which is why they refill so quickly after pressure has been applied to them.
Although this may appear to be “nit-picking”, it becomes very important when we start considering different treatments for them. To understand that these vessels are not actually veins is one of the basic reasons that the treatments for “facial thread veins” are different from the treatments that are effective for thread veins of the legs.
Another difference between the face and the legs is the nature of the skin around the thread veins. The skin on the face is exposed to the weather and sun all of the time and, as such, is very resistant to burning. Conversely the skin of the legs is usually hidden away from the sun and the elements and is usually very sensitive to any burning.
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