Full bibliography

Liposuction as a Treatment for Lipedema: A Scoping Review

Resource type
Authors/contributors
Title
Liposuction as a Treatment for Lipedema: A Scoping Review
Abstract
BACKGROUND: Lipedema is the progressive symmetrical deposition of subcutaneous fat and fluid in the lower body, ordinarily sparing the trunk, upper limbs, face, and neck. It may follow an autosomal dominant inheritance pattern. The gold standard treatment for lipedema is complete decongestive therapy, consisting of manual lymphatic drainage and compression garments. This scoping review assessed the existing literature on the effectiveness of liposuction as an alternative treatment for lipedema. METHODS: A scoping review of electronically available literature within PubMed, Scopus, and Cochrane focused on liposuction as a treatment for lipedema considering the following inclusion criteria: human studies, case series of 10 or more, controlled trials, randomized controlled trials, patient-reported outcome measurement studies, survey analyses, descriptive studies, retrospective analyses, recurrence included, follow-up of 6 months or more, age 18 years or older, and treatment modality being liposuction. RESULTS: Thirteen studies were selected. Nine studies reported decreased compression therapy use among patients following liposuction. No studies reported a long-term increase in compression therapy following liposuction. Studies found self-reported improvements in pain, mobility, bruising, and overall quality of life for patients following liposuction, many of whom had previously been on compressive therapy. Studies reported low rates of serious adverse events following liposuction, including deep vein thrombosis, pulmonary embolism, and infection. CONCLUSIONS: These results suggest that liposuction can be a viable treatment alternative to compression therapy for lipedema in patients whose compression therapy has not been helpful. However, there is not enough evidence to say whether liposuction is as effective as compression for patients first presenting with lipedema.
Publication
Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery. Global Open
Volume
12
Issue
7
Pages
e5952
Date
2024-07
Journal Abbr
Plast Reconstr Surg Glob Open
Language
eng
ISSN
2169-7574
Short Title
Liposuction as a Treatment for Lipedema
Library Catalog
PubMed
Citation
Bejar-Chapa, M., Rossi, N., King, N., Hussey, M. R., Winograd, J. M., & Guastaldi, F. P. S. (2024). Liposuction as a Treatment for Lipedema: A Scoping Review. Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery. Global Open, 12(7), e5952. https://doi.org/10.1097/GOX.0000000000005952
Publication