lymphoedema (comparison with lipoedema)
Last reviewed 01/2018
| clinical feature | lipoedema | lymphoedema |
| Gender | almost exclusively occurs in women | occurs in women and men |
| Age at onset | onset around puberty | any age |
| Distribution | bilateral lower extremities; symmetric involvement | unilateral, or one leg affected more severely |
| Foot involvement | absent, negative Stemmer's sign | present, positive Stemmer's sign |
| Buttock involvement | present | absent |
| Nature of swelling | soft, minimally pitting | firm, often marked pitting |
| Tenderness | common with pressure | uncommon |
| Easy bruising of affected area | present | absent |
| Improvement with elevation and compression | minimal improvement with elevation and compression | minimal improvement with elevation and compression |
| Family history | there is frequently a family history | less common |
| History of cellulitis, lymphangitis, and venous disease | uncommon | frequent |
| Angiosarcoma risk | there is no angiosarcoma risk associated with lipoedema | yes |
| MRI findings | homogenous increase in subcutaneous fat with little/no fibrosis, no skin thickening | honeycomb pattern fibrosis, edema fluid, skin thickening |
Reference:
- 1) Fonder MA et al. Lipedema, a frequently unrecognized problem Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology 2007; 57 (2): S1-S3.