Patients affected by lipedema show a strong tendency to bruising, which is caused by an increased fragility of the blood vessels. The permeability of the vessel walls increases as a result and more lymph fluid enters the surrounding tissue. Excess lymph fluid can no longer be transported away by the healthy lymph vessel system; this leads to the development of the typical feeling of pressure and tension. The constant proliferation of fat cells is a cause of oxygen deficiency in the tissue. As a result, an inflammatory process is set in motion, which leads to further tissue damage and pain in the case of lipedema.
Lipedema has so far only been proven on legs and arms, scientific evidence for lipedema on the abdomen or other areas has not yet been fully established. In 97% of the lipedema cases, in addition to the buttocks and hips, the legs or thighs are also most frequently affected by lipedema in 97 percent of the cases. In 31 percent of the cases, the arms also show typical symptoms of lipedema. According to our experience, even in a symptom-free state, the arms could have a predisposition to develop lipedema. With the course of time they mightcan further surgical treatment her develop diagnosis requiring surgery. The manifestation of the disease in the arms is often less pronounced or only becomes apparent with increasing age.
Affected persons diagnosed during puberty often suffer not only from the physical effects of the lipedema, but also from psychological ones. Lipedema does not or hardly reacts to the attempts of the weightloss through sport, healthy nutrition or diet. This circumstance increases the frustration of those affected.
At the beginning of the 2000s, Dr. Falk-Christian Heck first came into contact with a previously unknown disease – lipedema. The clinical picture of the affected women was met with neither acceptance nor understanding by the doctors. Even today, in many cases lipedema is still misdiagnosed as overweight or obesity (adiposity). The disease often remains undetected for a long time. Those affected suffer from shame, self-reproach and frustration.
As an experienced surgeon, Dr. Heck developed a completely new and sustainably effective surgical method, the lipedema surgery (lipo-decompression), which
- stops the lipedema
- is a pain-free surgery
- eliminates the need for compression garments
- improves the quality of life
These are still our goals today at the LipoClinic!
Costs of a lipedema lipo-decompression
Since September 2019, health insurance companies have been covering the costs of medical lipo-decompression for very severe stage III cases. However, patients must meet certain requirements to obtain a coverage by the health insurance. Each patient is different and the treatment at the LipoClinic is individually tailored. The costs for a lipedema surgery therefore depends on the complexity of the surgery and the aftercare required.
