Introduction

The objective of the article is the analysis of the information provided to patients by medical centres that offer sclerotherapy in Poland, as well as its possible impact on patients’ decisions about the procedure and the choice of a clinic.

Material and methods

An analysis of the data obtained from web page information available from 212 medical centres in Poland proposing sclerotherapy treatment. The medical centres were divided into 5 categories: aesthetic clinics, medical centres offering varicose vein treatment, medical and aesthetic centres, private specialist practices, and hospitals. The data provided by medical centres were divided into 5 main categories: main information about the procedure, indication description, information about the contraindications, post-procedure care, and possible complications.

Results

In the analysed material, only 34% of medical centres informed potential patients about contraindications and only 37% about possible procedure complications, in their web pages. The most commonly presented complications were haematoma and temporary discoloration of skin, and the possibility of venous thromboembolism occurrence was mentioned only by 10%. Information about the treatment not always being effective was provided by 16% of websites, and only 42.5% informed patients about the possible need of repeated procedures.

Conclusions

The results show that in many centres sclerotherapy is considered to be an aesthetic rather than medical procedure. To attract patients, several medical centres inform them only about the indications rather than contraindications but do not provide proper information about the complications and post-treatment precautions.