Home-Based Intermittent Pneumatic Compression Therapy: The Impact in Chronic Leg Lymphedema in Patients Treated for Gynecologic Cancer

Overview

Journal Healthcare (Basel)

Specialty Health Services

Date 2022 Apr 23

PMID 35455817

Authors

Yoon Kim

Seonghee Kim

Ji Young Lim

Chea Min Hwang

Myoung-Hwan Ko

Ji Hye Hwang

Affiliations

Soon will be listed here.

Abstract

We conducted a prospective study of cancer patients to investigate the efficacy, quality of life, satisfaction, and safety of a home-based intermittent pneumatic compression (IPC) device during the maintenance phase of lower extremity lymphedema. This device has a unique mode designed to mimic the manual lymphatic drainage (MLD) technique and thereby gently facilitate lymphatic draining of proximal extremities. Thirty patients with stage 3 chronic secondary unilateral leg lymphedema in the maintenance phase underwent IPC and conventional compression therapy for 4 weeks at home. The participants were guided to use 1 h course (30 min of MLD-mimicking mode and 30 min of conventional mode) of IPC device twice a day for 4 weeks. We assessed the patients' limb-volume measurement, quality of life (QOL), and satisfaction four times. There were no significant time-dependent interactions in the inter-limb volume difference ratio (V). In a subgroup analysis, participants who used the home-based IPC device and maintained their routine self-maintenance program of short-stretch bandages (group B, = 21) showed a more significant decline in V than those who did not maintained their routine care (group A, = 9). All scores of QOL decreased significantly after the intervention without subgroup difference. All participants were satisfied with the 4-week intervention. This study demonstrated that a home-based IPC device with an MLD-mimicking program is a useful option for maintaining the volume of limbs and improving the QOL of patients with stage 3 chronic leg lymphedema during the maintenance phase.

Citing Articles

Therapist versus Machine-Immediate Effects of Manual versus Mechanical Lymphatic Drainage in Patients with Secondary Lymphedema.

Schiltz D, Eibl D, Mueller K, Biermann N, Prantl L, Taeger C J Clin Med. 2024; 13(5).

PMID: 38592094 PMC: 10931544. DOI: 10.3390/jcm13051277.

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