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Lipedema

Infor­ma­tion on lipoedema

Lipoedema is a chronic, usually progres­sive disorder of fat distri­bu­tion in the body; it is not just a visual blemish but a disease. It is almost exclu­si­vely women who suffer from lipoedema, with the lower extre­mi­ties being parti­cu­larly affected. A symme­tri­cal fat distri­bu­tion disorder gradually develops in the area of the buttocks, saddle­bags, thighs and usually also the lower legs, extending to the ankles and feet. However, the arms can also be affected in 60% of patients, parti­cu­larly the upper arm area. 

Patients with lipoedema are very prone to haematoma formation (even small bumps cause bruising). Further­more, water retention occurs in the affected areas in the second half of the day; a dull swelling sensation and pain on touch and pressure are typical signs of lipoedema. The dispro­por­tion between a slim upper body and very strong legs is usually striking; those affected often have to buy two dress sizes more for the lower body than for the upper body. Lipoedema must be diffe­ren­tia­ted from "normal overweight" (obesity) or natural varia­ti­ons that affect the body contour (e.g. saddlebags). 

Lipoedema - the most important facts in brief

Further details on lipoedema

Conser­va­tive forms of treatment include the consis­tent wearing of compres­sion tights (up to compres­sion class 4), combined with exercise, manual lymphatic drainage and functional lympho­lo­gi­cal exercise proce­du­res. As lipoedema often progres­ses to lymph­oedema and thus to additio­nal water retention in the legs, early treatment is advisable. If the conser­va­tive proce­du­res are not suffi­ci­ently effective, liposuc­tion has proven to be a very effective surgical therapy. 

In parti­cu­lar, if no signi­fi­cant success can be achieved with edema through diet, exercise or medica­tion, a relatively early surgical inter­ven­tion in the form of liposuc­tion should be conside­red in addition to exhaus­ting the above-mentioned conser­va­tive options; also to avoid chronic progres­sion of the disease, as in extreme cases it can lead to so-called " elephan­ti­a­sis"; this repres­ents the extreme form of lipoedema with lymph­oedema, in which the lower extre­mi­ties are drama­ti­cally distended and thickened, changes in the shape of the legs and ultim­ately also prono­un­ced ortho­pae­dic problems and restric­tion of blood circu­la­tion can occur. 

Targeted and carefully performed liposuc­tion can improve the circu­la­tion of lymph and the venous system in the lower extre­mi­ties and thus relieve pressure in the tissue, which in turn helps to relieve the disturbed capillary function. Unfort­u­na­tely, several sessions are sometimes necessary to achieve a perma­nently satis­fac­tory result. 

Regard­less of the surgical procedure, it is also essential to wear compres­sion stockings consis­t­ently. We will be happy to advise you in detail on this clinical picture. Some health insurance companies will even approve the procedure if the condition is clearly prono­un­ced; this must be clarified with the respec­tive insurance company in each indivi­dual case. 

The treatment procedure is basically the same as a "liposuc­tion" (please refer to our website for more information).

The postope­ra­tive behavior and care are also similar to those for liposuc­tion. liposuc­tion; in addition, however, early lymphatic drainage is recom­men­ded, which we will be happy to prescribe for you.

The cost of treatment is between CHF 8,000 and CHF 12,000, depending on the extent and duration of the procedure. This includes anesthe­sia, surgery rental, assistants and consu­ma­bles, custom-made compres­sion pants and our medical surgery fee. 

Some private health insurance companies will cover the costs of lipoedema treatment on request if there is a medical indica­tion. We will be happy to submit a request for cost approval for you. 

The cost of an initial on-site consul­ta­tion is CHF 250. This amount can be credited towards your treatment if it takes place within 6 months. If you do not show up for the bindingly agreed initial appoint­ment, a cancel­la­tion fee of CHF 150 will be charged. 

The following rule applies to agreed surgery appoint­ments: In the case of planned and scheduled opera­ti­ons, it is often not possible for Medicine&Beauty AG to find a repla­ce­ment patient in the event of a cancel­la­tion. Due to these planning diffi­cul­ties, it is only possible to cancel surgery appoint­ments free of charge if this is done in writing by the customer at least 7 days (calendar days) in advance by e-mail or WhatsApp. 

For cancel­la­ti­ons made less than 7 calendar days before the planned operation, the customer will be charged 50% of the previously agreed operation costs. Appoint­ments canceled by Medicine&Beauty AG for health, medical or technical reasons cannot be refunded or compen­sa­ted. An alter­na­tive date will be offered at no additio­nal cost.