Tag: Lymphedema

All Edema Is Lymphedema: Progressing Lymphedema and Wound Management to an Integrated Model of Care

Chronic edema affects millions of people in the United States and worldwide. Edema can result from a variety of diseases, trauma, medications, and other contributing factors; however, all edema is related to lymphatic fluid dysregulation. Additionally, lymphatic impairment and integumentary dysfunction are interrelated, leading to complex clinical presentations that require an integrated medical model of care to maximize outcomes. PURPOSE: This narrative review article will highlight the current evidence that details lymphatic physiology, fluid regulation by the endothelial glycocalyx layer, and the interconnectedness of the vascular and integumentary systems leading to a paradigm shift in our understanding of edema, lymphedema, and chronic wounds. Traditional pedagogy remains siloed with respect to the body systems, whereas current evidence indicates a certain interdependence, particularly between and among the venous, lymphatic, and integumentary systems … read more

LinkedIn:
Wound Management & Prevention

Koya Medical and Essity Sponsor Forum for Physicians, Lymphedema Therapists and Researchers to Discuss Health Effects of Space Travel

Koya Medical, a transformative healthcare company focused on developing breakthrough treatments for lymphedema and venous diseases, and Essity, a leading global hygiene and health company that has as history of supporting space travel through the manufacturing of compression suits for astronauts, are sponsoring a forum to highlight the importance of venous and lymphatic health for space travel. The event takes place October 8, 2021 at the 35th annual congress for the American Vein & Lymphatic Society (AVLS).

The unique environment of space travel – reduced gravity, radiation exposure, varying atmospheric conditions, and the mental and physical stresses – imposes many challenges to human physiology and adaptability. The current goal is to create “nominal human function,” to extended safe habitation and exploration in space, and to ensure that humans thrive and quickly recover upon returning to Earth’s “1G” environment. For more than 50 years, NASA’s Human Research Programs have studied the intricacies of the human body in the weightlessness of space. Understanding the effects of spaceflight on humans is essential, and NASA and its European, Japanese, Russian and Australian colleagues have been particularly interested in investigating how the body reacts to long-duration spaceflight as the agency plans for extended missions on the Moon and Mars … read more

Wound Care Patient Outcomes: Establishing Trust to

     Improve Wound Healing Results

 

Last spring, I encountered that specific type of patient we sometimes meet, the one who has been through the chronic wound care revolving door so many times that he or she sets out on his or her own path and refuses any byways diverting from it.

 

Ms. A had stage 3 lymphedema after a left knee replacement opened the hidden trap door of undiagnosed lymphedema several years before her admission to our inpatient rehab facility. Her reason for admission was debility from urinary tract infection (UTI). Comorbidities of obesity, severe arthritis of the right knee, diabetes, and chronic lymphedema wounds on both legs were exacerbating factors making discharge home difficult from the acute hospital … read more

Wound Care Challenges: When The Lymphatic System Doesn’t Work

Due to difficulty defining lymphatic markers, difficulty visualizing vessels with traditional methods, and emphasis on the vascular system, research into the development of the lymphatics is still in its infancy–with many theories still to be proven. Without a doubt, it starts development in week 5, perhaps from the veins or the mesenchyme. Then, in weeks 6-9, sacs are formed in the neck, groin, posterior abdominal wall, and in the gut. Ducts grow and connect the different sacs while lymphatic vessels grow peripherally to the head, neck, arms, gut, and legs. The sacs become the lymph nodes, except for the upper portion of the gut sac: the cisterna chyli. Mesenchymal cells infiltrate the nodes and develop channels, capsule, and node framework. Lymphocytes appear just before birth in the nodes from the thymus. Lymph organs form from mesenchymal cells and clumping of lymph nodules.

 

So, from week 5 to the final week of gestation, the lymphatic system is developing. A spontaneous mutation at any point, injury to the fetus, a hereditary malformation, or a preterm delivery can all affect the lymphatic system of a child. This deficit can be apparent at birth, or latently appear at any time in their life, depending on where the deficit is … read more