Lymphedema of the lower extremities is a frequent complication of Kaposi's sarcoma (KS). Compressive therapy is the basis of treatment for lymphatic disorders, but to the authors' knowledge, there are no controlled trials to evaluate its effectiveness in KS-related lymphedema. Sixty-five patients with classic KS-associated lymphedema limited to below the knee were studied. Fifty patients receiv...

OBJECTIVE Scrotal lymphedema (SL) is a rare clinical pathology with multiple etiologies. We report a case of idiopathic giant scrotal lymphedema and review the existing medical literature in Medline from the last ten years. METHODS We report the case of a male patient with a giant scrotal lymphedema (43×40 cm) of unknown etiology developed over four years. RESULTS The patient was treated by...

Lymphedema is a condition characterized by tissue swelling caused by localized fluid retention. Advanced lymphedema is characterized by irreversible skin fibrosis (stage IIIb) and nonpitting edema, with leather-like skin, skin crypts, and ulcers with or without involvement of the toes (stage IVa and IVb, respectively). Recently, surgical treatment of advanced lymphedema has been a challenging r...

BACKGROUND Lymphatic filariasis (LF) infects approximately 120 million people worldwide. As many as 40 million have symptoms of LF disease, including lymphedema, elephantiasis, and hydrocele. India constitutes approximately 45% of the world's burden of LF. The Indian NGO Church's Auxiliary for Social Action (CASA) has been conducting a community-based lymphedema management program in Orissa Sta...

Lymphedema is the clinical manifestation of defects in lymphatic structure or function. Mutations identified in genes regulating lymphatic development result in inherited lymphedema. No mutations have yet been identified in genes mediating lymphatic function that result in inherited lymphedema. Survey microarray studies comparing lymphatic and blood endothelial cells identified expression of se...

PURPOSE/OBJECTIVES to describe the current state of the science on secondary lymphedema in patients with head and neck cancer. DATA SOURCES published journal articles and books and data from the National Cancer Institute, the American Cancer Society, and other healthcare-related professional association Web sites. DATA SYNTHESIS survivors of head and neck cancer may develop secondary lymphe...

INTRODUCTION Breast-cancer-related lymphedema affects approximately 25% of breast cancer (BC) survivors and may impact use of the upper limb during activity. The purpose of this study is to compare upper extremity (UE) impairment and activity between women with and without lymphedema after BC treatment. METHODS 144 women post BC treatment completed demographic, symptom, and Disability of Arm-...

Recent studies have indicated that vascular endothelial growth factor-D (VEGF-D) stimulates lymphangiogenesis in humans. Furthermore, mutations of vascular endothelial growth factor receptor 3 (VEGFR-3) have been observed in families with hereditary lymphedema. The lack of stimulation of lymphangiogenesis could lead to production of even more VEGF-D to obtain stimulation of lymphangiogenesis re...

This study aimed to investigate lymphedema prevalence using three different measurement/diagnostic criterion combinations and explore the relationship between lymphedema and quality of life for each, to provide evaluation of rehabilitation. Cross-sectional data from 617 women attending review appointments after completing surgery, chemotherapy, and radiotherapy included the Morbidity Screening ...

BACKGROUND The purpose of this study was to determine the prevalence and nature of internal, external, and combined lymphedema and fibrosis in patients with head and neck cancer (HNC). MATERIALS AND METHODS We obtained consent from 100 patients newly diagnosed with having cancer of the head and neck for a 4-year, prospective, longitudinal descriptive study. Recruitment began in August 23, 201...