Discomfort and swelling caused by lymphedema can get in the way of proper movement and sports performance. Wearing the right medical compression garments could help with your treatment and reduce the swelling. These are specially designed products that you can comfortably wear for hours to prevent fluid buildup in your tissues. Letting stagnant fluid build up in your body can …
Tips for a Happy, Healthy 2021
The New Year signals a new opportunity to make positive changes in your life. Whether or not you are personally impacted from lymphedema, this is an excellent time to take renewed charge of your life. We put together a few ideas for kicking off the 2021 right
Choosing the Right Deodorant for Lymphedema Treatment
Managing your lymphedema is a lifelong commitment. The best prescription for minimizing lymphedema’s impact on your life involves following your healthcare practitioner’s advice carefully and faithfully. For instance, most patients will be advised to wear an appropriate compression garment. Patients diagnosed with arm lymphedema, for example, will typically be advised to buy and wear a compression sleeve featuring graduated compression. …
Can Allergies Trigger a Lymphedema Flare-Up?
When it comes to lymphedema and allergies, there is relatively little solid evidence that the two are directly linked. But that’s not to say there is no connection. Indeed, there is some anecdotal evidence that lymphedema flare-ups may be linked to worsening allergy symptoms. Accordingly, addressing your allergies may help with managing lymphedema symptoms. Consult your doctor for recommendations regarding …
The Importance of Keeping Up With Medical Treatments During COVID-19
The COVID crisis has altered virtually every aspect of life. Everything from schools and restaurants to houses of worship have been shuttered, as people try to avoid close contact with others. And for good reason. Exposure to this dangerous, highly transmissible virus must be avoided as much as possible if we are to protect one another. New evidence suggests that …
Head and Neck Exercises to Help Reduce Lymphedema Swelling
Lymphedema is a chronic condition that may occur after the delicate vessels and/or nodes that comprise the lymphatic system become damaged and fail to drain properly. The lymphatic system parallels the blood circulatory system. But unlike the more familiar circulatory system, the lymphatic system does not rely on a central pump — the heart — to keep fluids moving along. …
The Difference Between Medical Compression Wear and Shapewear
Medical compression wear and body shapewear can be similar. But there are key differences between these body-hugging garments. While they both squeeze a particular area of the body (usually the midriff, in the case of shapewear), medical-grade compression wear does not function in the same way as shapewear. Nor is its purpose solely cosmetic. For starters, medical-grade compression garments are …
Is “Prehab” the Solution to Preventing Lymphedema?
Lymphedema has long been recognized as a chronic, treatable — but incurable — condition in which excess lymph fluid accumulates in affected tissues and causes swelling, discomfort, and other related problems. It is frequently associated with life-saving treatments for potentially deadly diseases such as breast cancer. That’s because these treatments often include therapies such as biopsy or surgical removal of …
COVID-19 and Lymphedema: What You Need to Know
It would be an understatement to suggest that the current global crisis is merely unprecedented. Unparalleled, unheard-of…adjectives fail to convey the astounding nature of our situation. By now it’s hard to imagine anyone remains who is not aware of the threat of the novel coronavirus. But what is COVID-19, and how can you prevent coronavirus infection? And who is at …
A New Way of Diagnosing Lymphedema?
Recently, doctors involved in lymphedema research at Tomsk University, Siberia, announced a potential new method for diagnosing lymphedema. The method combines an imaging technology known as “multiphoton imaging” with sophisticated computing known as machine learning. Multiphoton imaging enables real-time analysis of living tissue, using near-infrared light. In essence, the technique allows scientists to look more deeply into skin tissue without …