Check if you have lipoedema In early-stage lipoedema, you may have heavy legs, a narrow waist and a much smaller upper body. You may have a large bottom, thighs and lower legs, but your feet will usually be unaffected. Sometimes lipoedema can affect the arms too, but the hands are not usually affected.
Fat feels abnormal and painful.
Unlike normal fat accumulation, fat areas resulting from lipedema tend to be very tender if you apply pressure and may be easy to bruise. The fat deposits can also hurt for no apparent reason, and the skin can become less elastic feeling.
Obesity is the result of being overweight, which can cause fat to develop in the legs. Lipedema is the disproportionate setting of fat in arms and legs, unrelated to body weight, often associated with prominent swelling, common pain, and a column-like look. Lipedema can appear in both thin and obese individuals alike.
If you are affected by lipoedema: your legs appear symmetrically swollen – swelling can occur from the hips down to the ankles and your legs appear column-like; the feet are not usually affected. affected areas feel 'spongy' and cool and the skin is generally soft and subtle. you bruise easily in the affected areas.
Lipedema is often confused with lymphedema, a similar disease that also causes swelling in the limbs. But under the microscope, the two disorders look different, and the causes, while similar, involve different effects on the vasculature. Both are often confused with obesity.
A helpful diagnostic tool to distinguish lipedema from lymphedema is to pinch the skin over the dorsum of the base of the second toe (Stemmer sign); thickened skin that is difficult to lift off of the underlying tissue is considered diagnostic for lymphedema.
Stage 1. In this early stage, it may be difficult to distinguish lipedema from excess fat on the lower body. Instead, providers look for certain characteristics, including: Extra fat in the buttocks, thighs, and calves, but not in the ankles or feet.
Liposuction is the only treatment available to lipedema patients that eliminates the troublesome fat deposits from the legs, hips, buttocks, stomach, and/or arms. Liposuction enables doctors to improve the look of the legs and restore better mobility for the long-term.
There's no specific test for lipoedema. The main sign is fat deposits on both sides of your body. These are out of proportion with the rest of your build, particularly on your buttocks and thighs. The fat can feel lumpy and be painful to touch.
Many people confuse lipedema fat and general fat that forms as a result of being overweight. Though they may appear similar, that isn't at all the case. There's a clear difference between regular fat and lipedema fatty tissue that the trained eye can pick out.
Thick legs – not always lipedema
It is characterized by dispro- portional obesity of the extremities, especially in the region of the hip and the legs, hematoma development after minimal trauma, and increased pressure-induced or spontaneous pain.
Lipedema is a condition that can lead to a disproportionate amount of fat building up in one's legs, hips, and, in some cases, arms. Those suffering from lipedema may have big thighs, legs that feel heavy, and a lower body that appears large in comparison with their waist and upper body.
Why is it so important to reduce excess weight? “Being overweight and the associated metabolic changes make every oedema worse. Lipoedema patients can lose weight too. The legs will still look different to the upper body, even after weight reduction, but the symptoms are reduced.”
Lipedema is sometimes characterized by pain and diet-resistant fat tissue accumulation in the subcutaneous tissue. This means that it is very difficult for us lipedema patients to lose fat in the affected areas through diet or exercise.
Lipedema almost exclusively occurs in women, with the onset typically by the third decade of life. The classic appearance of lipedema includes bilateral and symmetrical involvement of the lower extremities, with sparing of the feet (Fig.
Making the diagnosis of lipedema
Age of onset: 10 to 30.
Aerobic exercises such as swimming, walking and cycling are especially recommended because they increase lymphatic drainage and improve blood flow through the affected limbs. High impact exercising (i.e. jogging, step-aerobics) or contact sports are better avoided as they may exacerbate join pain and lead to bruising.
Physical activity
Any increase in movement is good for lipoedema. It will keep our joints moving, strengthen muscles, improve lymph drainage, help in managing weight, and enhance our confidence and mental health.
However, healthy eating is very important for people with lipedema as the growth of normal fat is thought to promote lipedema fat growth. Lymph sparing tumescent liposuction and water jet assisted liposuction are the only methods that are known to reduce the number of lipedema fat cells at this time.
Although there is no specific cure, lipedema can be well-managed like many other chronic health concerns. With proper diagnosis and treatment, many lipedema patients experience a significant improvement in symptoms and do well long-term.
The condition occurs almost exclusively in women and people AFAB. Lipedema may have a connection to hormones because it usually starts or gets worse during: Puberty. Pregnancy.
In contrast, lipedema occurs both deep and superficially and hence, in addition to the typical cellulitis there is an increase in the diameter of the affected limb and a much tougher touch than typical cellulite.