Indirect lymphangiography as a diagnostic technique of lymphedema

Indirect lymphangiography is a new technique for the evaluation of lymphedema. The major advantage of the indirect lymphangiography is its noninvasiveness using nonionic water-soluble contrast media. It could be performed by injecting contrast media intradermally, so unnecessary skin incision could be avoided. Few manuscripts were reported concerning indirect lymphangiography in the all over the world so far. We now report our observation of indirect lymphangiography using lsovist 240 (Schering A G). We have encountered 3 primary hypoplastic lymphedema of lower extremity and 2 secondary lymphedema of upper extremity. The results were as follows: 1. In 3 primary hypoplastic lymphedema, lymphatics were few and tiny. The injected contrast media showed localized and prolonged stasis. 2. In 2 secondary hypoplastic lymphedema, contrast media was easily absorbed in numerous and ectatic lymphatics. 3. Indirect lymphangiography is a satisfactory method to see the pathologic changes of lymphatics in our 5 cases.