Chronic lymphedema is almost always a permanent and often progressive condition. In most cases, neither medical nor surgical means can completely relieve the effects of lymphedema. Surgical management of chronic lymphedema has high morbidity and a success rate of only 30%, and many patients return to their presurgical limb girth within three to four years. Nonsurgical treatment of chronic lymphedema can decrease overall lymphatic edema. Sequential gradient compression systems, which compensate for impaired lymphatic flow, return protein-rich lymphatic fluid from the extracellular regions of the tissues back into the circulatory system where the fluid can be excreted.
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