Recently I traveled oversees on a 7-8 hour flight. I did not wear a lymphedema sleeve. I don't have one. I do have a long-sleeve compression shirt that I carried with me for weightlifting training. But I did not wear this either. Instead I frequently used lymph massage, just in case. When traveling one has to be careful about things surrounding the flight, rather than air cabin pressure. Namely being careful with carrying too much stuff or lifting heavy luggage, making sure to move, and staying hydrated.
Air travel and lymphedema has been looked at in an observational study for women treated for breast cancer traveling to compete in dragon boat races in Australia. There are many factors, such as wearing lymphedema sleeves, cabin pressure, hauling luggage, medications, and more. The conclusion of the authors was that air travel did not cause significant change in BIA ratio (to check on increase in lymph fluid) in the ‘at-risk’ arm for the majority of breast cancer survivors who participated in dragon boat racing, and that the wearing of a compression garment for women without lymphedema was unlikely to be advantageous or harmful.
Reference: Kilbreath et al. Effect of air travel on lymphedema risk in women with history of breast cancer Breast Cancer res Treat 2010; 120:649-654
No comments:
Post a Comment