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Edema and Lymphedema

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Textbook of Palliative Care

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Abstract

Edema or swelling is a common occurrence during the palliative care phase for many conditions. Various causes and forms of oedema are possible, with most palliative care patients suffering from a mixed form with lymphatic and venous contributions. Edema is most frequently present in the limbs but may be found in any region of the body, including the head and neck, trunk, and genitals. Edema can cause significant distress, reducing mobility and independence. Screening and assessment for oedema therefore should be comprehensive and systematic to ensure the underlying causes of the swelling are discovered. Furthermore, the treatment goals of the patient should be accounted for in determining the treatments offered. Various treatments, with particular focus on compression and exercises, may be used but often require modification from traditional usage in the palliative care setting. In this setting, treatment focus is often on symptom management rather than volume reduction.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW, Australia

    Elizabeth S. Dylke & Sharon L. Kilbreath

Authors
  1. Elizabeth S. Dylke
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  2. Sharon L. Kilbreath
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Correspondence to Elizabeth S. Dylke .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. HammondCare Learning and Research Centre, Greenwich Hospital, Greenwich, New South Wales, Australia

    Roderick Duncan MacLeod

  2. Vrije Universiteit Brussel, VUB-UGent End-of-Life Care Research Grou Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Brussels, Belgium

    Lieve van den Block

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Dylke, E.S., Kilbreath, S.L. (2018). Edema and Lymphedema. In: MacLeod, R., van den Block, L. (eds) Textbook of Palliative Care. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-31738-0_13-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-31738-0_13-1

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, Cham

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-319-31738-0

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-319-31738-0

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