Lymphedema in the Mastectomy Postoperative Period: An Integrative Literature Review

Abstract

Aims and Objectives:To analyze the evidence available in the literature on the stages during which upper limb lymphedema after mastectomy occurs. Background: Among the adverse effects of breast cancer treatment, lymphedema is the most prevalent. Design: Integrative literature review. Methods: The Latin American and Caribbean Literature on Health Sciences (Literatura Latino-Americana e do Caribe em Ciências da Saúde-LILACS), PubMed, and Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature (CINAHL) databases were used to select the pertinent studies. The identification data for these studies were summarized, and their methodological features and results were extracted. Results: Regarding the time elapsed since surgery, the highest prevalence of lymphedema corresponded to the late postoperative period, and regarding its severity, mild lymphedema was the most prevalent form. The prevalence was also the highest among the women who were subjected to radical mastectomy and radiotherapy. Conclusions: Many women who are undergoing treatment for breast cancer use strategies for the prevention and control of lymphedema of the upper limb following mastectomy. Relevance to Clinical Practice: The findings of the present study might inform future studies aiming to assess strategies that can be started in the immediate and late postoperative stages to detect lymphedema early and prevent the increase of its prevalence during the late postoperative period after mastectomy.

Virtual Reality as a Promising Tool Supporting Oncological Treatment in Breast Cancer

“…Interventions with the use of VR in the studies analysed can be divided into those that affected the physical functions of patients [29,31,32,35], the mental sphere [30,33,34,[36][37][38][39], and the pain level [14,32,34].…”

“…Res. Public Health 2021, 18, 8768 2 of 17 after mastectomies with axillary lymph node dissection and radiation [8,11,14]. This condition involves abnormal accumulation of fluids and proteins in the intercellular space, chronic inflammation, and oedema [14] which consequently causes upper limb functional impairment.…”

“…Public Health 2021, 18, 8768 2 of 17 after mastectomies with axillary lymph node dissection and radiation [8,11,14]. This condition involves abnormal accumulation of fluids and proteins in the intercellular space, chronic inflammation, and oedema [14] which consequently causes upper limb functional impairment. Additionally, limitations in ROM following breast cancer treatment may be due to scar tissue formation at the incisional site, post-radiation fibrosis, protective forward shoulder posturing, post-mastectomy pain syndrome, and/or restriction of use upper extremity [8,14].…”

“…This condition involves abnormal accumulation of fluids and proteins in the intercellular space, chronic inflammation, and oedema [14] which consequently causes upper limb functional impairment. Additionally, limitations in ROM following breast cancer treatment may be due to scar tissue formation at the incisional site, post-radiation fibrosis, protective forward shoulder posturing, post-mastectomy pain syndrome, and/or restriction of use upper extremity [8,14]. Limited shoulder ROM may restrict activities of daily living, e.g., tilting the head back while washing or combing hair, or arm movements involving shoulder elevation during, e.g., reaching for the item high on the shelf [15].…”

Effect of Intermittent Pneumatic Compression in Combination with Kinesiotape on Post Mastectomy Lymphedema

“…Primary lymphedema is caused by error in lymphatic growth and is idiopathic. Secondary lymphedema develops after an injury to the lymphatic system, which is usually established (8) .…”