Lipedema: A Practical Guidebook

This book is written as a guide for patients suffering from lipedema.  Known as a common, painful fat distribution disorder characterised by a  disproportional fat accumulation, lipedema represents an unmet medical  need where scientific evidence on both pathophysiology and its treatment  is still lacking. As the number of affected patients is increasing,  besides striving to map the conundrum of clinical signs and relate these  to their underlying mechanisms, developing standardised approaches  addressing both fat mass reduction and body contouring are key issues  able to warrant therapeutic success. In this book, our intention was to  look at this complex disease from all its actual perspectives and  provide a concise summary of the actual state of knowledge for all those  affected.
After looking into the most actual data on  the aetiology, pathophysiology and course of the disease, the book then  focuses on our complex treatment protocols wherecurrent conservative and  surgical treatment options are systematically analyzed, considering  their long-term chances of success as well as associated risks and side  effects. We propose a three step treatment approach. 1st step initiates  with weight control and addresses obesity, if present. 2nd step is an  individual liposuction therapy plan to treat all lipedema areas, and  more. 3rd step includes body contouring surgery, only in patients with  massive skin laxity after liposuction and / or massive weight loss.