What is lymph stagnation on the face and how to deal with it

According to some experts, about 140 million people on the planet suffer from lymph stagnation. Other researchers claim that this figure is much higher. Be that as it may, people often do not even realize that they have this problem. More precisely, a person understands that something wrong is happening to the body, but does not associate this condition with lymph. Meanwhile, lymph stagnation should absolutely not be underestimated: this condition can cause very serious health problems.

What is lymph stasis

Lymph is a liquid that permeates almost our entire body. And if the blood delivers nutrients and oxygen to the cells, then the lymph takes away from them everything unnecessary and harmful that is formed in the process of life.

End products of metabolism, toxins, pathogenic microorganisms (viruses, bacteria, fungi, parasites), cancer cells - all this is pumped out of tissues using the lymphatic system. First, all this “dirt” enters from the intercellular space into the smallest lymphatic capillaries, then flows into larger channels and is disinfected in the lymph nodes. As a result, lymph, already purified and enriched with lymphocytes (the main cells of the immune system), is collected from the entire body in the area of ​​​​the collarbones - here it flows through the large neck veins into the circulatory system.

The movement of lymph along this entire path is called lymphatic drainage. If it is unobstructed, then the body is cleansed and protected.

But the outflow of “white blood” may be disrupted. Because of this, fluid begins to accumulate in blood vessels and soft tissues with all its baggage of toxins and pathogens. Stagnation of lymph occurs.

In a mild form it is familiar to each of us

Has it ever happened to you that by the end of the working day, spent in a sitting position, your legs swelled, and by the morning everything went away? Or, on the contrary, did you wake up with bags under your eyes, and an hour later they disappeared? All this stagnation of lymph of a transient nature is a common phenomenon.

But a violation of lymphatic drainage can become pathological, and in this case, fluid stagnation is called lymphostasis and is accompanied by a persistent increase in size of an organ or body part. This is not such a rare disease. According to WHO, every fourth adult on the planet suffers from it.

Most often, lymphostasis occurs in the extremities: legs (90% of cases) and arms (10%). If the disease worsens, elephantiasis develops: the limb increases in size many times over. In the severe stage, the affected part of the body becomes immobilized, and the person turns into a disabled person, unable to care for himself independently.

The face is also one of the first to be hit. It would seem, why shouldn’t the lymph calmly flow down from it? After all, the face and neck are the parts of the body along which our “living water” moves from top to bottom (in the rest of the body the vector is the opposite: from bottom to top). But no. Blockage of the parotid, submandibular and subclavian nodes stops movement.

Women also experience breast lymphostasis, a disease in which the outflow of lymph from the mammary glands and surrounding adipose tissue is disrupted.

Also, due to stagnation of lymph, the abdomen may swell. Lymphostasis of internal organs is considered the most dangerous, because they are the most difficult to detect.

How to improve lymph flow

The best prevention of lymph stagnation is a balanced diet and a healthy lifestyle.

Drink more water

Maintaining the necessary hydration is extremely important to ensure that lymph actively moves through the vessels and drains properly. Lymph is approximately 95% liquid, which is why it is so important to drink plenty of clean water throughout the day. Dehydration is one of the most common causes of lymphatic stagnation. But what is important is that it is quite easy to eliminate this cause. The average daily water intake for a healthy adult is 30 ml per kilogram of body weight. It is also very easy to check whether the body is suffering from dehydration. To do this, you need to pay attention to the color of your urine. It should be straw color. If it is darker, you need to increase the amount of fluid consumed. If you find it difficult to drink so much water in its pure form, you can add a slice of lemon, some herbs or a few fresh berries. But it is important that it is water, and not juices or other drinks.

Move more

Along with maintaining hydration, daily exercise is very important for proper lymphatic flow. Any physical activity speeds up your breathing rate, improves blood circulation and stimulates you to consume more fluid, and together these factors help pump lymph through the system, preventing its stagnation. To improve the movement of lymph through the vessels, it is most useful to engage in sports walking, running and jumping. Although less active yoga is also beneficial for the lymphatic system. Twisting and stretching exercises cause tissue contraction and thus promote proper lymph flow. It is very important to exercise daily for people who have a sedentary job. Inactivity is one of the most common causes of lymph stagnation.

Dry brush massage

This technique has been known for centuries and has been used in Eastern medicine since ancient times. These days it is experiencing a surge of unprecedented popularity. Massaging the body with a dry brush with stiff bristles improves blood flow and prevents lymphatic stagnation. But it is important to do all movements from the bottom up towards the heart.

Sauna

If there are no contraindications, it is useful to visit a bathhouse or sauna to improve lymphatic drainage. When the body warms up, blood circulation and lymph movement improve. In addition, while a person is in the sauna, the parasympathetic nervous system is activated, that is, the body goes into relaxation mode. And it is also good for the lymphatic system, since stress is one of the culprits in slowing down lymph flow.

Pay attention to nutrition

The best foods for the lymphatic system are fruits, vegetables, and nuts and seeds. Raw vegetables and fruits contain antioxidants and enzymes that help the body break down and eliminate toxins faster. All plant foods are important for the lymphatic system, but leafy greens hold a special place in this group. Such foods contain a lot of chlorophyll, which improves the functioning of the lymphatic system.

Regarding seeds and nuts, they contain omega-3 and omega-6 essential fatty acids, which, among other benefits, also help cleanse the lymph of toxins. But it is important to understand that seeds and nuts are best consumed raw. Fried or glazed will not produce the desired effect.

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Practice breathing exercises

Breathing exercises have many benefits. One of them is improving lymph outflow. If you devote 10-15 minutes to breathing exercises daily, this will speed up the movement of lymph through the vessels. During deep breathing, pressure is created on the lymphatic system and thus the fluid in it moves upward.

Why does it occur

What inhibits the movement of lymph? To understand this, let's first understand what makes it move.

In general, lymph flows through its vessels slowly. The difference compared to the speed of blood flow is significant. Why? Because lymph does not have its own organ that would make it move. Blood has such a pump - this is the heart, but nothing specially pumps its white assistant.

Our lymph moves due to muscle contraction. The muscles contract, put pressure on the lymph vessels and push their contents. The main “pumping” of lymph is provided by the muscle pumps of the feet, ankles, calves, thighs, etc.

Therefore, for the fluid to stagnate, it is enough to simply not move for a while or incorrectly distribute the load on the musculoskeletal system. Any uncomfortable position in which the lymph vessels will be compressed can cause harm.

Mild lymph congestion occurs:

• the morning after sleep, especially if you sleep in an incorrect, uncomfortable, monotonous position (burying your face in the pillow, squeezing your arm or leg, etc.),
• after long trips, which also limit posture and movement,
• as a result of being on your feet for a long time, long walks (lymph flows from bottom to top, and an exclusively vertical body position can slow down its outflow),
• after a working day that you spent sitting with a minimum of physical activity, it is especially harmful to sit cross-legged,
• when wearing tight clothing and uncomfortable shoes (tight, high heels, no heels, flat soles).

Also provoking factors are:

• heat,
• spicy and salty foods,
• alcohol,
• stress,
• unfavorable environmental situation,
• physiological characteristics: flat feet, obesity, hormonal imbalances.

If lymph stagnation is transient and occurs rarely, then it does not pose a threat to health, only the aesthetic side suffers. But such conditions can develop and turn into a chronic problem, and then it will become a disease - lymphostasis.

Lymphedema after circumcision

Lymphatic edema, circumcision of the foreskin is one of the causes of which, is rare in comparison with other types. When tissue is removed, damage occurs, causing swelling and hematomas. Traumatization of tissues can occur as a result of improper medical manipulations or concomitant diseases, as well as during fusion of the head and foreskin. If lymphedema appears and the condition worsens after circumcision, you should consult a specialist to identify the causes of the disorders.

Lymphatic edema of the legs, which is treated at a high level at the Yusupov Hospital, can cause irreversible changes. Timely treatment of lymphedema of the legs and face is aimed at eliminating both the underlying disease and associated disorders.

At the rehabilitation clinic you will be provided with highly qualified assistance for lymphedema. Pre-registration for an appointment with specialists is carried out by calling the Yusupov Hospital.

Lymphostasis: causes of the disease

As a rule, lymphostasis develops due to various pathologies. What could be the reasons:

1. Congenital anomalies of the lymphatic system:
   reduced number of lymph vessels, their reduced or increased diameter, valve insufficiency, etc. Symptoms appear from early childhood and intensify with age. Such cases are only a few percent of the total number of lymphostasis.
2. Acquired disorders of the patency of lymphatic vessels,
   including:
   compression of lymph vessels by a tumor
3. injuries,
4. damage due to surgery
5. disruption of vascular patency due to inflammation, infections, parasitic diseases.
6. Disturbances in the functioning of the lymph nodes:
   lymphadenopathy (enlargement), lymphadenitis (inflammation), lymphoma (cancer), removal, etc. If the lymph node is clogged or completely absent, this breaks the “logistics” of the lymphatic transport system.

   For example, lymphostasis of the arm often occurs after surgery to remove a mammary tumor, during which axillary lymph nodes are also removed. Or during surgical treatment of the pelvic organs and reproductive system, the inguinal, pelvic, retroperitoneal, and femoral nodes are cut out, which leads to lymphostasis in the legs.

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7. Diseases of the cardiovascular system:
   venous insufficiency, varicose veins, thrombophlebitis, heart failure.
8. Some other pathological conditions:
   paralysis, intestinal inflammation, low thyroid activity, kidney dysfunction, etc.

With the exception of the first point, all other reasons cause so-called secondary lymphostasis. It develops in more than 90% of cases.

How does the lymphatic system work?

The lymphatic system works according to the following principle: intercellular fluid (also known as lymph) flows through the body and washes the cells, feeding them with the necessary substances, and the cells, in turn, give it waste products and toxins. Then all this “garbage” continues to flow, first through small capillaries, then through larger vessels, and finally enters the lymph nodes, which serve as a kind of filter in which all these substances are neutralized.

Lymph nodes play a vital role in cleansing the body. Just imagine how many viruses and bacteria are destroyed by our immune system. And how many toxic substances enter our body through air and food! And all this happens every day. All these harmful substances are sent to the lymph nodes for cleaning. From there, the lymph comes out already cleansed and neutralized. It is in the lymph nodes that lymphocytes and antibodies are produced, which guard the body’s defense against various infections.

The lymph also receives dust particles from the lungs, destroyed and tumor cells, and it removes all this into the excretory system. Moreover, thanks to the lymphatic system, excess water and salts are removed from the tissues.

Why is lymph stagnation dangerous?

It is believed that 80% of human diseases are caused by disturbances in the functioning of the lymphatic system. Therefore, lymphatic drainage must be uninterrupted.

If lymph stagnates, all the toxins and pathogens that should have gone to waste are retained in the body. And even if we are not talking about a disease, but about slight stagnation of fluid, this already ruins life, affecting the appearance.

What happens if lymph flow in the head and neck is disrupted? The lymphatic pool turns into a decaying swamp. And all the “dirt” that has not reached the lymph nodes to be filtered there crawls out in pimples, swelling, and bags. The face becomes puffy and loose. Of the less obvious changes - wrinkles, folds, jowls, double chin, unclear contour - lymph is also to blame for them.

What else? Elephant feet, puffy hands, swollen fingers - all this also does not add grace. But the reasons are still the same: some obstacles arise in the path of lymph movement (vessels are pinched, or the axillary, popliteal, inguinal lymph nodes are clogged), and the lymph can no longer ascend along its route (up from the tips of the fingers and toes).

If the problem is not dealt with, serious damage can be caused to your health.

With lymphostasis, metabolic processes are disrupted, local immunity decreases, which means that an infection can easily attach to the affected area and inflammation can develop.

In the case of lymphostasis of a limb, it may become completely immobile if the disease is brought to an advanced stage.

The most common complications of lymphostasis:

• eczema (skin inflammation that looks like bubbles of boiling water),
• erysipelas (streptococcal skin lesions),
• trophic ulcers (long-term non-healing open wounds that arise due to the rejection of dead tissue),
• phlegmon (acute and life-threatening purulent inflammation),
• osteoarthritis of the joint (destruction of the cartilage that covers the joint).

Lymphostasis also increases the risk of developing lymphosarcoma (tumor of lymphoid tissue).

The extreme case of complications is death from severe sepsis.

Lymphatic system brief description

The lymphatic system is sometimes referred to as the circulatory system, but it has its own organs and internal fluid - lymph. In the embryo, this system develops already in the sixth week, and in the ninth week vessels and nodes begin to appear. The main functions of the lymphatic system are to cleanse the body of toxins and protect it from foreign bacteria. The lymphatic system consists of organs (bone marrow, spleen, thymus), capillaries (they collect fluid), vessels (fluid from the capillaries enters there) and lymph nodes (they accumulate everything that was collected by the capillaries and vessels).

Signs of lymph stagnation

If lymph stagnates in the body, then most often it is difficult not to notice.

The area of ​​congestion swells, increases in volume, and marks from tight clothing remain on it. There is a feeling of heaviness and discomfort in the swollen limb. Everyday algorithms are disrupted: you can’t put a ring on your finger, you have difficulty fitting into jeans, etc.

If such symptoms are one-time in nature, and you see a connection with provoking factors (eating too much salty food, sitting on your feet during a multi-hour trip, etc.), there is no need to worry. This is not a disease yet.

But if transient swelling has become systematic, this already indicates the initial stage of lymphostasis. For example, your legs swell in the evening, everything goes away overnight, but by the next evening the picture repeats itself, and so on day after day - this is already an alarming signal.

There are several ways to recognize lymphedema:

• Press on the suspicious area with your finger. In case of swelling, a dent is formed that will remain for a long time.
• Try to gather the skin into a fold on the back of your toe. If this is difficult or impossible, you have a “positive Stemmer sign,” which confirms the presence of lymphedema.

It gets worse. As the disease progresses, the swelling becomes non-disappearing and new symptoms appear. Connective tissue grows - due to thickening and fibrosis, the skin becomes rough and textured, taking on a pitted texture. Subcutaneous fat thickens, the stratum corneum grows excessively (hyperkeratosis), cracks and ulcers appear.

In advanced cases, the limbs hypertrophy (elephantiasis). As hyperkeratosis progresses, the skin takes on a warty or “mossy” appearance. A clear, light yellow fluid (lymphorrhea) may be released. The disease causes physical and mental suffering and can lead to disability.

Permitted work for lymphatic edema of the lower leg

Sedentary and monotonous work causes venous congestion, which is one of the causes of the pathological process. Permitted work for lymphatic edema of the lower leg is associated with moderate physical activity.

With this disease, work should not be associated with static loads and heavy lifting. During the consultation after the examination, specialists at the Yusupov Hospital determine the extent of tissue damage and develop a treatment program. For each patient, specialists at the Yusupov Hospital individually determine the permissible loads and the optimal type of activity.

Stages of lymphostasis

Diagnosis and treatment of lymphostasis

If the swelling is persistent and severe, you need to see a specialist. The causes of lymphostasis can be very different, and they need to be identified and eliminated in time to avoid progression of the disease and fatal consequences.

The doctor will first examine the patient, take measurements, check the completeness of movement in the joint, and evaluate muscle strength.

To determine the causes of lymphostasis and identify inflamed nodes, hardware techniques will be used: ultrasound, X-ray, MRI, CT.

Specific procedures such as lymphoscintigraphy (determines the state of lymph vessels) and fluorescent lymphography (examination of lymph channels using a contrast agent) may be required.

To assess the functioning of the lymphatic system as a whole, a blood test is taken - general and, if necessary, biochemical.

Depending on the case, lymphedema can be treated conservatively or surgically.

What should you avoid?

Should be avoided:

1. Negligence towards colds. If left untreated, a “critical mass” of complications constantly attacks the immune system, and it collapses. The lymph thickens, many metabolites circulate in it, and the person faces multiple inflammatory processes;
2. Improper oral hygiene. Unbrushed teeth are not only aesthetically unpleasant, but also a breeding ground for bacteria. Caries, periodontal disease, stomatitis are provocateurs of inflammation and health problems;
3. Abuse of coffee, sandwiches, and processed foods. Such products “acidify” the internal environment of the body and disrupt the outflow of lymph;
4. Neglecting medical examinations. Elevated blood cholesterol levels are a common cause of problems with the lymphatic system too;
5. Uncontrolled stress. Yes, some mental stress at work and physical strength in the gym are only beneficial. But constant stress can lead to heart problems, vasoconstriction, and problems with cleansing the lymphatic system. For methods of relieving stress, see here →;
6. Uncontrolled passion for folk methods. This applies to self-cleanses of the body, fasting without medical indications, drinking green juices instead of food and other similar activities. Detox procedures should be discussed with a gastroenterologist, internist and cardiologist for any person over 25 years of age. Those who have chronic diseases should also consult doctors according to their “profile”;
7. Uncontrolled use of hormonal drugs. This includes strong anti-inflammatory and anti-allergenic drugs such as diprospan, oral contraceptives, and anabolic steroids. A person consuming them without medical supervision may harm the lymphatic system.

Treatment of lymph stagnation

Conservative methods of treating lymph stagnation include medications and physiotherapy.

The most universal and safe method is lymphatic drainage massage. We are able to do it ourselves. The main thing is to choose reliable and proven techniques that will not harm beauty and health. Read about some of them in the next chapter.

In clinics, the affected area is also exposed to a magnetic field (magnetic therapy), laser radiation (laser therapy), and electric current (electromyostimulation). The techniques are designed to improve the movement of fluids, relieve swelling and inflammation, and strengthen blood vessels.

In severe cases, it comes to operations. For example, there is a technique for suturing the lymphatic and venous vessels so that the lymph flows through the vein. Or you can transplant a lymph node from one place to another. Also, the cause of lymphostasis is sometimes eliminated surgically. For example, a tumor or blood clot is removed.

Advice for women

1. Most of the lymph nodes are located on the chest, armpits and shoulders. If you wear tight underwear, the knots will be compressed. This will not allow lymph to penetrate them and cleanse them.
2. Often, wearing tight, tight underwear provokes tumors of the lymph nodes. It can also cause the formation of fibrous and bone tissue in the breast area. This can provoke cancer.
3. Therefore, to remove stagnation, try to buy underwear and clothes that fit.

As you can see, lymph stagnation provokes many health problems. Often this can cause the development of cancer. If you monitor your health, you will be able to notice the problem in a timely manner. And following the recommendations and the indicated gymnastics to disperse the lymph helps to normalize the condition.