An Arm & a Leg’s treatment programme lasts for 21 days and consists of the following elements:

• Medical and lymphoedema assessments leading to individual treatment plans
• Twice daily manual lymphatic drainage, skincare and multilayer lymphoedema bandaging
• Daily physiotherapy
• Psychological support
• Water exercises (where appropriate)
• Instruction on self-maintenance so that improvements can be sustained
• Fitting of compression garments to maintain volume reduction
• Assessment and final reports to ensure that each patient and her/his GP, Consultant, Lymphoedema Clinic and PCT have a record of the treatment given and the results achieved.

As most sufferers are not ‘ill’ in the usual sense, An Arm & a Leg prefers to run its DLT programme in pleasant, non-institutional surroundings, firmly believing that this supports the best possible outcome for its patients. It follows that An Arm & a Leg is not suitable for patients who need nursing care or are unable to look after themselves.

The programme is very intensive and thus quite demanding of its participants. Patients generally find that they get very tired though the results are worth it.

This programme was designed to complement the work of local lymphoedema clinics – patients can benefit from more intensive treatment while still remaining in their overall care.