COMPLEX DECONGESTIVE PHYSIOTHERAPY DECREASES CAPILLARY FRAGILITY IN LIPEDEMA

Abstract

Lipedema is a disproportional obesityfeaturing frequent hematoma formation dueto even minor traumatic injuries. On the basisof clinical observations, complete decongestivephysiotherapy diminishes the incidence ofhematomas due to minor injuries beyond legvolume reduction. Hematoma developmentmay be caused by altered capillary resistance(CR) or altered capillary fragility (CF). Wemeasured capillary fragility (CF) before andafter complex decongestive physiotherapy(CDP) to examine, whether CDP could reduceCF. 38 women with lipedema were included inthe study. Twenty-one (21) patients weretreated with CDP and 17 using exclusivelymoisturizers as the control group. CDPcomprised once daily manual lymph drainage,intermittent pneumatic compression andmultilayered short-stretch bandagingperformed throughout a 5-day-course. CF wasevaluated with the vacuum suction method(VSM) using Parrot’s angiosterrometer inboth groups. Decongestive therapy resulted ina significant reduction of the number ofpetechiae while no change was detected withinthe control group. Complete decongestivephysiotherapy significantly reduced CF inpatients with lipedema and this reduction maylead to reduced hematoma formation.