Treatment for lipedema goes beyond surgery; expert warns

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Characterized by an unusual accumulation of fat in the legs, knees, arms or hips, the chronic condition was recognized as a disease by the WHO (World Health Organization) only in 2022.

According to the nutritionist Paula Frederichi, specialist in lipedema and inflammatory diseases and creator of the Brazilian Association of Lipedema Patients (ABRALI), the treatment is divided into clinical and surgical — which is done through liposuction of the accumulated fat so that the diseased cells are removed. However, surgery is only indicated in severe cases.

“Lipedema is a chronic disease, therefore there is no cure, but it can be treated and early diagnosis favors the disease’s progression.“, he explains. “Normally, we women associate lipedema with some difficulties we encounter, such as buying pants of a size that don’t need to be tightened at the waist, wearing high boots, getting several bruises without knowing the reason or still do a lot of dieting and physical activity and, even so, there is no improvement in terms of fat on the legs or arms”, he adds.

According to the nutritionist, clinical treatment greatly improves the condition of those with lipedema. “Today there are clinical treatments that improve lipedema, especially at lower levels, which are not indicated for surgery due to the disease itself, only if it is for aesthetic reasons”, she explains.

“As the International Classification of Diseases (ICD) for lipedema is still recent, everything related to the disease is still new and it is my commitment, as the founding doctor of ABRALI, to always bring information about the subject to people”, she states.

“Whenever the patient is diagnosed with lipedema, I explain the surgery option, but I make it clear that it is not curative nor the only way. There are still extremes of the disease in grade 1, in which the patient undergoes surgery more for a reason. aesthetic, or to a greater degree, that the surgery ends up exposing the patient to an absurd risk”, he warns.

In an interview with Fantasticthe family of Luana Andrade said that the model’s discomfort with the fat located on her knee was not simply an aesthetic issue. Lipedema had even caused her to miss work due to the pain she had felt since her adolescence.

Luana then spoke with her boyfriend, the businessman and influencer João Hadad, and decided that he would do something to change the discomfort he felt. All tests were done and everything was under control. Luana chose an excellent doctor and hospital to carry out the reconstructive surgery. However, shortly after the influencer went for surgery, it was clear that something went wrong.

According to the São Luiz Itaim hospital, after two and a half hours of surgery, Luana went into cardiac arrest. There, the procedure was interrupted and she was resuscitated, and then taken to the ICU. The tests identified that the young woman had a pulmonary embolism.

However, shortly after that, Luana had another cardiac arrest. The hospital made every effort possible and was supported by the institution’s entire medical team. However, she had two more cardiac arrests and did not survive. The cause of death was pulmonary embolism.