A Prospective Evaluation of Lymphedema-Specific Quality-of-Life Outcomes Following Vascularized Lymph Node Transfer

@article{Patel2015APE,
  title={A Prospective Evaluation of Lymphedema-Specific Quality-of-Life Outcomes Following Vascularized Lymph Node Transfer},
  author={Ketan M Patel and Chia-Yu Lin and Ming-Huei Cheng},
  journal={Annals of Surgical Oncology},
  year={2015},
  volume={22},
  pages={2424-2430},
  url={https://api.semanticscholar.org/CorpusID:13376881}
}
Microsurgical treatment of lymphedema with VLN transfer procedures effectively decrease limb circumference, and this improvement is mirrored by improvements in patient-reported outcomes and quality of life.

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Clinical and Psychosocial Outcomes of Vascularized Lymph Node Transfer for the Treatment of Upper Extremity Lymphedema After Breast Cancer Therapy

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It is suggested that insurance status may have influenced decisions to undergo lymphedema surgery, and besides surgical treatment, race, and age were also found to significantly impact QoL on multivariable analysis.

Vascularized Lymph Node Transfer Improved Outcomes of Elderly Patients with Secondary Upper Extremity Lymphedema

VLNT for secondary upper extremity lymphedema in elderly patients significantly decreased the limb circumferential difference and frequency of cellulitis and improved quality of life without using compression garments postoperatively.

PROMs after Lymphatic Reconstructive Surgery: Is There a Correlation between Volume Reduction and Quality of Life?

Based on a broad range of outcome measurements, an improved quality of life is observed in almost all patients, even in those without measurable volume loss of the extremity operated on, which emphasizes the need for a standardized use of patient-reported outcome measures to evaluate the benefits of lymphatic reconstructive surgery.

A Prospective Study on the Safety and Efficacy of Vascularized Lymph Node Transplant

Omentum does not have any donor site lymphedema risk making it an attractive first choice for VLNT, and there was a significant improvement at 2 years postoperatively across all outcome measures.

Outcomes for Physiologic Microsurgical Treatment of Secondary Lymphedema Involving the Extremity

Patients with secondary UEL/LEL who undergo VLNT/LVB demonstrate improved functional status and reduced affected limb volumes postoperatively, with patients with UEL seem to have a more substantial reduction in limb volume differential compared to LEL patients.
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Prospective Trial of Complete Decongestive Therapy for Upper Extremity Lymphedema After Breast Cancer Therapy

It was noted that during the entire treatment and follow-up period, QoL consistently increased, ending about 5% above baseline, and pain scores gradually decreased, ending with 54% of patients at 0 pain.

Upper limb function and quality of life in breast cancer related lymphedema: a cross-sectional study.

In this population the presence of BCRL certainly affects upper limb functioning and related activities even though HRQoL was not perceived differently, and Lymphedema has to be early diagnosed and treated with an adequate rehabilitative plan to prevent activity limitations and participation restrictions.

Quality of Life, Upper Extremity Function and the Effect of Lymphedema Treatment in Breast Cancer Related Lymphedema Patients

Upper extremity function was correlated with the age of breast cancer patients and QOL was influenced by M-stage, while Lymphedema treatment was found to be effective in reducing edema in patients with breast cancer related lymphedEMA.

Postmastectomy Lymphedema: Long-term Results Following Microsurgical Lymph Node Transplantation

LN transplantation is a safe procedure permitting good long-term results, disappearance, or a noteworthy improvement, in postmastectomy lymphedema, especially in the early stages of the disease.

Operative Treatment of Peripheral Lymphedema: A Systematic Meta-Analysis of the Efficacy and Safety of Lymphovenous Microsurgery and Tissue Transplantation

Operative interventions for peripheral lymphedema appear to provide consistent quantitative improvements postoperatively, with a relatively wide safety margin.

Systematic review of quality of life and patient reported outcomes in patients with oncologic related lower extremity lymphedema.

There is a deficit in high quality studies forHRQOL in patients with LLL secondary to cancer, and most did not conform to guidelines set for assessment of HRQOL, nor did they use lymphedema condition specific PRO instruments.

Quality of life among breast cancer patients with lymphedema: a systematic review of patient-reported outcome instruments and outcomes

High-quality data on HRQOL outcomes is required to inform surgical decisions for breast cancer management and survivors, and the Upper Limb Lymphedema 27 (ULL-27) was found to have strong psychometric properties.

Predictive Factors of Response to Intensive Decongestive Physiotherapy in Upper Limb Lymphedema After Breast Cancer Treatment: a Cohort Study

Duration of lymphedema from cancer treatment and body mass index were the only two predictors of absolute reduction of lyMPhedema volume after intensive decongestive physiotherapy.

A quality of life measure for limb lymphoedema (LYMQOL)

LYMQOL is a validated condition-specific QoL assessment tool which can be used for lymphoedema of the limbs both in clinical assessment and as an outcome measure.

From Theory to Evidence: Long-Term Evaluation of the Mechanism of Action and Flap Integration of Distal Vascularized Lymph Node Transfers

Distal, nonanatomic placement of VLN flaps provide sustained limb circumference reduction in extremity lymphedema patients following a minimum of 1-year postoperatively.