2005 Volume 19 Issue 1 Pages 22-32
Abstract
The purpose of this study was to examine the index efficacy of the peripheral skin blood flow volume by determining whether it could be used to predict the severity of lymphedema. The subjects of this study were 61 female breast cancer patients and 35 healthy females. The peripheral skin blood flow volume was measured by using the rheometer. The measurements were examined along with the existence of lymphedema and its severity. The results showed that the blood flow volume of the patients was significantly less than that of the healthy females. Among the right breast cancer patients, the blood flow volume of those with lymphedema was less than that of those without. Among the left breast cancer patients, the blood flow volume of those with lymphedema was more than that of those without. It was also shown that as the severity of lymphedema increased, so did the difference of the volumes between the left and right sides. Among the patients with the middle level severity, the flow volume of the left breast cancer patients was double that of the right-breast cancer patients. The results indicated a possibility of using the difference of blood flow volumes between the left and right sides, as an index for judging the severity of lymphatic anasacrca. It was also implied that the formation of the observational criterion and the intervention method which take into consideration the differences of blood flow volume, need be modified between left and right breast cancer patients.
