Poster: Ultra-High Frequency Ultrasound Assessment Of Lower Leg Edema Before And After Compression Bandaging

Given that chronic edema of the lower extremities can often signify venous or lymphatic insufficiency, leading to cutaneous ulcers, a poster presented at SAWC Fall evaluated the effectiveness of an inelastic zinc oxide bandaging system in reducing edema by means of ultra-high frequency ultrasound (UHFUS) evaluation.

Researchers focused on 20 patients with lower limb edema, comparing 10 patients receiving zinc oxide bandaging and short stretch with 10 patients treated only with short-stretch bandaging. Each patient was evaluated by measuring the circumference at the calf level, the thickness, and the eco-structure of the tissues placed between the medial surface of the tibia and stratum corneum by using a high-resolution linear ultrasound probe (48 MHz), once a week for four weeks. At the same site, an examination was performed with an ecocolor Doppler (3.7 cm/s) measurement system.

After two weeks of treatment, patients who received zinc oxide bandaging had a 65% reduction of edema and 20% lower leg circumference reduction compared to baseline. The short stretch bandaging group showed respectively 40% and 8% reduction compared to baseline. At the end of treatment, the zinc oxide group showed a 90% reduction of edema and 25% circumference, while the short stretch group showed 46% and 10%, respectively.

Poster CR-004 was featured at SAWC Fall 2021.