Case history 1
Case history 2
Case history 3
Mrs T was referred to us for treatment of her severe bilateral leg lymphoedema.
Although she had ‘thick ankles’ as a child, her oedema only became truly apparent around the age of 14. It became progressively worse in her twenties while she was having a family.
She developed recurrent cellulitis, for which she was hospitalised on several occasions. Each attack caused her lymphoedema to deteriorate.
Eventually,when her mobility had become severely compromised as a result of her worsening lymphoedema and back pain was a constant problem, she underwent surgery to reduce her lower right leg (a Charles Procedure). Following the operation, the lymphoedema ballooned over the knee giving the ‘pantaloon’ effect and the pain in the leg increased. By this time she was in her early sixties.
When Mrs T first attended An Arm & a Leg for 3 weeks of intensive decongestive lymphatic therapy she walked with sticks and had difficulty lifting her legs onto the bed. She was very down and felt that decongestive lymphatic therapy was her last chance. She had never before been offered any manual lymphatic drainage or lymphoedema bandaging, let alone full decongestive lymphatic therapy.
After first treatment
After her first period of intensive, in-patient decongestive lymphatic therapy with twice daily manual lymphatic drainage, multilayer lymphoedema bandaging and daily physiotherapy, Mrs T lost nearly 6 litres of fluid from her right leg, over 5 litres from her left and 2.5 stone. By the time she left, she no longer relied on her sticks and was able to lift her legs onto the bed without help. Her back pain was reducing. She felt optimistic because within a short space of time she saw her condition improving rather than continuing to deteriorate as it always had done. However, significant further progress was possible from a combination of intensive and maintenance treatment.
Results
Mrs T was referred for a second period of intensive, in-patient decongestive lymphatic therapy 8 months after the first and a third period 3 months after that. By the end of the third period, she had lost 28 litres of fluid and about 5 stone in all, back pain was significantly less and she was taking a 2 mile walk daily. As she said, ‘I now have legs. They may not be beautiful legs, but they are legs!’
Mrs M’s case, as illustrated here, is an extreme one, but it serves to illustrate the efficacy of decongestive lymphatic therapy with twice daily treatments. For the best long-term prognosis, early treatment is advisable and adequate local maintenance essential. This should consist of regular manual lymph drainage, compression hosiery (properly fitted and replaced every 4-6 months) and lymphoedema bandaging from time to time.
Case history 1
Case history 2
Case history 3