Research Publications and Clinical Guidelines

The All-Ireland Lymphoedema Guideline was developed as a clinical resource to promote evidence based practice and as a guide for managers and commissioners to support modernisation of pathways of lymphoedema care, education and research. The objective is to ensure that all citizens will have access to local, evidence based lymphoedema resources.

The British Lymphology Society’s resources section includes position papers on clinical pathways including the Red Legs Pathway and Assessing vascular status in the presence of chronic oedema, in addition to conference posters, papers and factsheets.

The HSE’s Lymphoedema/Lipoedema Working Group was established in 2016 with the aim of developing a national integrated model of care for the prevention, assessment, and treatment of lymphoedema/ lipoedema in accordance with evidence-based practice. The Model of Care Report is intended to inform the development of standards of care and key performance indicators (KPIs) for services in Ireland.

The purpose of the HSE National Wound Guidelines 2018 is to provide a standardised consistent approach for wound care in Ireland. The recommendations the National Wound Management Guideline 2018 are divided into specific sections to enable the clinicians to directly seek the advice relating to a particular clinical practice situation which they need to address. The needs of special populations with wounds are addressed in the relevant sections:

• General Wound Care
• Diabetic Foot Ulcers
• Pressure Ulcers
• Leg Ulcers
• Palliative Wound Care
• Education

The LIMPRINT (Lymphoedema IMpact and PRevalence – INTernational Lymphoedema Framework) Research Study is an is an international study aimed at capturing the size and impact of chronic oedema in different countries and health services across the world. The focus of LIMPRINT is to provide evidence to support the development and reimbursement of lymphoedema services, was undertaken in close collaboration with participating national lymphoedema frameworks.

Results from the study are available in two open access special editions (2019 and 2021) of the Lymphatic Research and Biology academic journal and can be accessed below:

The International Lymphoedema Framework (ILF) works in partnership with National Lymphoedema Frameworks (such as the NLFI) to improve the lives of people living with lymphoedema and related disorders.

The publications section of the ILF website contains a number of Best Practice Statements, Consensus Statements and recent research publications that should be of interest to health professionals.

The object of the International Society of Lymphology (ISL) is the promotion of all activities which propose to, among others, advance and disseminate knowledge in the field of lymphology and allied topics.

The journal Lymphology is the official publication of the ISL and includes papers and special symposia dealing with clinical and basic studies of the lymphatic system and related fields.

Research publications from 1968 – 2022 can be accessed at the journal’s website:

The aim of this document is to support effective management of patients affected with ‘wet legs’ (lymphorrhoea) and chronic oedema on a community nursing caseload. It is intended to be used by community nurses as a resource that can support a successful pathway of care.

2021 publication detailing the new and enhanced Chronic Oedema Wet Leg Pathway, introducing a new level four compression section, which increases the layers of compression bandaging for patients with venous insufficiency or who are morbidly obese.

Reference: Thomas, Morgan and Lawrence (2021). Introducing the new Chronic Oedema Wet Leg Pathway. Br J Community Nurs 2021 Oct 1;26(Sup10):S16-S21

The third edition of the Best Practice Statement on Compression Hosiery focuses on improving the patient experience of medical compression hosiery for the lower leg, which include socks and stockings, by understanding the patient’s perspective and fostering a patient–practitioner partnership for supported self-management.

The document is designed to be simple and user-friendly, and to put the patient at the centre of assessing for, selecting, prescribing and delivering care with medical compression hosiery.

This document, which was developed by key opinion leaders, patients and UK third sector organisations, may be of interest to anyone involved in delivering support and clinical services to people with lipoedema, including but not limited to GPs, lymphoedema therapists, community nurses, plastic surgeons and dietitians.