Lymphoedema causes and treatment

Lymphoedema is a surgical disorder, and there is swelling of the lymph. It is more of a mechanical disorder and can be caused by multiple diseases or any infection. It is the most common reason for Lymphoedema in India because of filariasis. Congenital disabilities can also be a cause of Lymphoedema.

Doctors are reporting a significant rise in the number of Lymphoedema cases because of continuous treatments for breast and uterus cancer. Until recently, the treatment of Lymphoedema was mainly supportive was compression. Physiotherapy was the only possible treatment, and surgery for lymphedema was only used as the last resort. However, with increasing technology and the concept of microsurgery, doctors are treating Lymphoedema differently. 

We at Deccan clinic are doing vascularised lymph node transforms for Lymphoedema, wherein we harvest lymph nodes are harvested along with blood vessels transferred to the infected lymph. They then start functioning normally, absorbing lymphatics and then putting them back into the blood, reducing edema. The result of the surgery for lymphedema is generally visible by 3-5 weeks post-surgery. This surgery has very little donor site morbidity.