My PS stated that I have lymphedmia

I am post Plastic surgery... and never knew of lympedemia. I had my anchor incision Tummy tuck in Erie Pa. October 2005 I had thigh lift , arm lift , breast lift buttock lift in Costa Rica March 2006 When I returned from Costa Rica my PS here in Erie states now that I have Lymphademia, and prescribed me compression thigh highs. I don't see why now he is stating that I have this !!! Although I did have an inner thigh lift my legs are still smaller than before.... they appear the same or better than before ...so how does he diagnose this now? Help?

It's not unusual to get Lymphedema from a thigh lift. I'm really not sure how they would be able to determine this right now as you still might have some swelling going on. They really don't have any good tests to determine that you have it, but usually in very mild cases compression hose will help to maintain they don't get worse. You probably might consider having them refer you to a therapist for help. Amy

You know , I wanted to see how I would do now without those compression hose... so Friday thru Monday I did not wear them... by Monday night I could notice the swelling again starting , even my feetsies were Poofed Out ... Back to wearing the compression hose I guess. Do you know if this would end up being a Permanant condition then? Like as in Forever ... no correction of it? If so, it doesn't seem worth it to me. Getting very depressed with this.

Once there is damage to the lymph system there really isn't much they can do for it except to help you manage it better. Lymphedema is not something that can be cured, only managed. If you wear the compression hose that will help to control it better, I have to wear mine all the time to keep them maintained, I can take them off, but after having my legs down I'll start to swell without them. I know this is depressing, it's very depressing to me a lot of the time. The compression hose is the only thing that has helped me. Amy

I can not imagine having to wear these HOT stockings forever... they are hard to get on & take off...and I can not even imagine doing this when I turn 40, or 50 or even 60 years old...this is not a Good thing in my eyes... definately not worth it, I would rather have kept the skin and been able to wear shorts in the summer

Carol, Hopefully with time it will improve. I don't always have to wear my compression hose, but if I want them to stay half way looking ok I do. It's a pain I know. Amy

Well Thank you very much Amy. Maybe with some of the theraputic massage that I saw someone writing about, I can wear the hose less time.... we shall mention it to the doctor. Thank you

The massage : manual lymphedema drainage (MLD) I myself have Lymphedema so I have been thru it, I wear a support stocking during the day and a wrap at night to sleep in. On a norm a do 2 MLD's a day morning and night . They have not found a cure but they can do things to make it more bare-able. ALso if you do not know there is also a yahoo group for lymphedema I found out about it a few days ago. Lymphland

Carol, How is the swelling in your legs coming along? I had swelling in my lower legs for almost a year after I had an extended tummy tuck and now it has completely resolved. I am a ER nurse and the docs told me that it was lymphedema..so now after having WLS I am terrified of getting the thigh lift when i get to goal weight. I hope all is getting better with you. Please keep us updated on your progress. All I can say is that mine did resolve on it's own....and hopefully yours will too !!! Hugs, Dana

I have an appointment Monday with my PCP to see if I should be tested for Lymphademia. I didn't wear my compression hose this weekend , and so far my legs feel good, and don't look that horrible yet. I guess that I will know soon enough.