Effectiveness of digital combined decongestive therapy for lower extremity lymphedema: a prospective single-arm clinical trial with follow-up.
Alis Kostanoğlu, Gökhan Can Törpü, Selva Otsay
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In 30 seconds
This prospective single-arm clinical trial with follow-up evaluated digital combined decongestive therapy (CDT) in 82 people with lower extremity lymphedema. Participants received weekly therapist-led CDT for 4 weeks alongside digitally guided self-management, then used compression garments during follow-up. Mean limb volume fell from 5027.7 ± 1826.0 mL at baseline to 4682.3 ± 1746.0 mL after treatment and 4310.5 ± 1380.2 mL at 12-week follow-up (both comparisons with baseline p < 0.001). Total and domain-specific LYMPH-ICF-LL scores also improved at both assessments (all p < 0.001).
Key findings
- Mean limb volume decreased from 5027.7 ± 1826.0 mL at baseline to 4682.3 ± 1746.0 mL post-treatment (p < 0.001).
- At 12-week follow-up, mean limb volume was 4310.5 ± 1380.2 mL, lower than at baseline (p < 0.001).
- Total and domain-specific LYMPH-ICF-LL scores improved after treatment and at follow-up (all p < 0.001).
Why it matters
The findings suggest that a hybrid model combining limited therapist-led sessions with digitally guided self-management can accompany reductions in limb volume and better reported functioning in lower extremity lymphedema. This is relevant to rehabilitation planning because it offers evidence for a structured approach that extends care beyond in-person sessions, although the study does not establish comparative effectiveness against conventional CDT.
What to keep in mind
The single-arm design provides no comparison with conventional CDT or another control, so the observed changes cannot establish comparative effectiveness.