Effect of a Manual Lymphatic Drainage with Rehabilitation Exercise on Edema, Pain, And Lower Extremity Function in Gynecological Cancer After Surgery

Abstract

This study aimed to determine the effects of manual lymphatic drainage with rehabilitation exercises on edema, pain, and lower extremity function in patients with gynecological cancer after surgery. The study included 20 patients with gynecological cancer with a Numeric Rating Scale (NRS) pain score >3, who were either inpatients or outpatients in Seoul. The patients were randomly assigned to either the experimental group (n=10) or control group (n=10). The experimental group underwent manual lymphatic drainage with rehabilitation exercises, whereas the control group underwent manual lymphatic drainage with diaphragmatic breathing. Each patient was treated for 50 min twice a week for 4 weeks. Before and after the experiment, edema, pain, lower extremity function, and quality of life were evaluated using the Circumference Tape, Numeric Rating Scale, Lower Extremity Functional Scale, and Memorial Symptom Assessment Scale. The results of this study were as follows. First, the edema between the experimental and control groups significantly decreased before and after the intervention; however, there was no significant difference in the comparison between the groups. Second, the pain scores between the experimental and control groups significantly decreased before and after the intervention, and there was a significant difference in the comparison between the groups. Third, the lower extremity function between the experimental and control groups significantly increased before and after the intervention, and there was no significant difference between the groups. Forth, the quality of life between the experimental and control groups significantly increased before and after the intervention, and there was significant difference in the comparison between the group. The physical symptoms were significantly different between the groups; however, the emotional symptoms were not. The analysis of this experiment showed that, both the groups were effective in improving edema, pain, lower extremity function, and quality of life in patients with gynecological cancer undergoing surgery. In particular, manual lymphatic drainage with rehabilitation exercises was more effective than manual lymphatic drainage with diaphragmatic breathing for edema and physical symptoms of patients with gynecological cancer after surgery.