Causes and Symptoms

Effects of Lymphedema

Causes

Lymphedema occurs when the lymph vessels are unable to drain lymph fluid properly (1). There are two main causes of lymphedema. One can occur on its own, primary lymphedema and the other when lymph nodes have been damaged by another disease or condition, secondary lymphedema.

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Symptoms

Lymphedema symptoms mainly present themselves in the affected limbs (1). There are a multitude of signs and symptoms ranging from mild, not visually noticeable to severe, noticeable changes to limb appearances and extremely debilitating symptoms.

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Progression and Interactions

Lymphedema progressively worsens overtime as the number of symptoms and impact each symptom has on the individual increases in each consecutive stage (2):

Stage 0: Non-visible
Stage 1: Reversible lymphedema
Stage 2: Spontaneously irreversible initial lymphedema and Spontaneously irreversible increasing lymphedema
Stage 3: Lymphostatic elephantiasis

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References

(1) Kayiran, O., De La Cruz, C., Tane, K., Soran, A. (2017) Lymphedema: from Diagnosis to Treatment: Turk J Surg, 33 (2): 51-57. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5508242/

This article outlines the causes, symptoms, diagnosis, and treatment options for lymphedema. This article highlights the differences between primary and secondary lymphedema. Various diagnostic methods regarding the staging of this condition have been explained in detail such as magnetic resonance lymphangiography. Other non-imaging and non-invasive diagnostic methods such as tape measurement, water displacement and skin evaluation were also explained.

(2) Manrique, O. J., Bustos, S. S., Ciudad, P., Adabi, K., Chen, W. F., Forte, A. J., Cheville, A. L., Jakub, J. W., McLaughlin, S. A., & Chen, H. C. (2020). Overview of Lymphedema for Physicians and Other Clinicians: A Review of Fundamental Concepts. Mayo Clinic Proceedings, 0(0): 1-16. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.mayocp.2020.01.006

This article outlines the four lymphedema stages and explains in detail the cause, symptoms, and treatments of each stage. Along with the stage symptoms this article outlines many other symptoms that occur in individuals living with lymphedema.