Compression Bandages in Upper Limb Lymphedema

Compression Bandages in Upper Limb Lymphedema After Breast Cancer

Despite different types of bandages are using in the lymphedema treatment, numerous of them have not been directly compared. The aim of this study is to compare the efficacy of five different kinds of bandages on limb volume and lymphedema-related symptoms. It was also measured as secondary variables the comfort of the bandage related by the participants and the directly cost of each kind of bandage during the treatment.

Inclusion Criteria:

• Women after breast cancer surgery undergoing upper limb lymphedema not previously treated
• Having more than two centimeters between two adjacent measurements between the lymphedematous and the contralateral upper limb
• The presence of heaviness, tension or fovea in the affected limb
• More than six months post-surgery or radiation to eliminate the possibility of being a post-chirurgical oedema

Exclusion criteria will be:

• Bilateral breast cancer surgery
• Only hand lymphedema
• Active cutaneous infection
• A loco-regional cancer recurrence
• The impossibility of complete all the physical therapy sessions
• A primary lymphedema
• Women with lymphedema symptoms like thickness and heaviness in the upper limb but without a difference of two centimeters in two adjacent points
• Any contraindication to physiotherapy