Article

The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of postural drainage
(PD) and manual lymphatic drainage (MLD) techniques on edema in the lower limbs
of women with morbid obesity submitted to bariatric surgery. DESIGN: A total of
47 women between 20 and 40 yrs old with a body mass index of 40 kg/m or higher
were randomly placed in three groups: control group (n = 15), PD group (PDG, n =
16), and MLD group (n = 16). Lower limb perimetry was carried out in the first
and third days of the postoperative period. All patients underwent six sessions
of conventional physical therapy, plus additional six sessions of PD for the PDG
or six sessions of MLD for the MLD group. RESULTS: Intragroup analysis showed
volume reductions in the PDG and the MLD group after the treatment protocol.
Comparison of the pretreatment and posttreatment deltas among the groups showed a
larger change in volume for the PDG compared with the control group and a larger
change in volume for the MLD group compared with the control group or the PDG.
CONCLUSIONS: The treatment protocols promoted reductions in volume values,
suggesting that both techniques could be used to help reduce lower limb edema
among this population. Nevertheless, the best results were obtained with MLD.

Langue : ANGLAIS