The evelopment of the lipedema

[Translate to English:] Lipödem - Dr. med. Daniel Münch
Normal condition: Tissue fluid from the blood vessels is absorbed and transported away by the lymphatic vessels
[Translate to English:] Lipödem - Dr. med. Daniel Münch
Lipoedema: The defective blood vessel wall causes increased leakage of fluid, which cannot be fully absorbed by the lymphatic vessels. The excess fluid accumulates in the tissues and especially in the fat cells
[Translate to English:] Lipödem - Dr. med. Daniel Münch
Final stage: The enlarged fat cells press on the lymphatic vessels, which also impedes the removal and further increases the swelling of the fat cells

Lipoedema is a disease in its own right. Unlike obesity, it is not about stored reserve fat: lipoedema fat has a completely different structure and cannot be broken down through exercise or diet. On the one hand, there is a hereditary, circumscribed proliferation of subcutaneous fatty tissue in the form of enlarged fat cells (hypertrophy) in lipoedema, but also as a result of an increased number of fat cells (hyperplasia). In addition to this increase in fat volume, there is a disturbance in the fluid permeability of the small blood vessels (this explains the tendency to bruise spontaneously). As a result, more fluid from the blood vessel system gets into the tissue. Due to the increased supply of liquid, the initially intact lymphatic system reacts with increased evacuation of the accumulated lymphatic fluid. The permanent strain on the lymphatic vessels ultimately also leads to damage to the walls of the lymphatic vessels, with a resulting reduction in transport capacity. If the accumulated tissue fluid can no longer be transported away sufficiently, fluid builds up in the interstitial spaces between the tissues, but above all in the fat cells. Over the years, there is a further increase in subcutaneous fat and protein-rich edema. This leads to hardening of the tissue and the walls of the lymphatic vessels. This leads to a further reduction in lymph transport with the possible development of lymphedema.

Complex clinical picture

There are still many unanswered questions regarding the cause and the underlying disease processes and functional disorders of eyelid edema.

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