The effects of lymphatic massage on serum lipid levels and venous flow in patients with lymphedema

Interstitial fluid proteins play an important role in cholesterol homeostasis. Accumulation of protein rich fluid in interstitial tissue leads to lymphedema. Current study aimed to evaluate the effects of manuel lymphatic drainage (MLD) on the serum cholesterol and trigliserid levels and venous flow changes. Our study included thirty patients with lower limb lymphedema. MLD treatment was performed after measurements of pretreatment serum cholesterol and triglyceride levels of the patients. Four to ten days after MLD treatment serum cholesterol and triglyceride levels were measured again. The caliber of femoral vein and mean flow velocity changes were also examined by venous Doppler ultrasonography. The statistical comparisons were done by using paired sample t-test. P<0.05 values were accepted as significant. There were six male and twenty-four female patients ranging in age from 34 to 70 years Pre-treatment, mean serum cholesterol levels was 182±39 mg/dl and triglyceride levels was 123±47 mg/dl. Post-treatment mean serum cholesterol and triglyceride levels were 196±42 mg/dl, and 127±52 mg/dl respectively. Post-treatment serum cholesterol and triglyceride levels were found to be significantly high. The caliber and mean flow velocity of femoral vein were also significantly increased after MLD. MLD effectively decreases the interstitial lymphatic fluid volume, alleviates the symptoms and improves the quality of life. MLD also significantly increases mean serum cholesterol and triglyceride levels and increases venous flow.