History of MLD
Dr. Vodder is considered the “Father” of Manual Lymphatic Drainage (MLD). He was looking for a way to improve sinus drainage from facial surgeries in his practice in Germany. Dr. Robert Lerner was a New York Surgeon who had been using pneumatic pumps to relieve edema in 1972. He traveled to Germany in the early 1980s to study under Dr. Vodder and brought his treatments to the United States. Dr. Michael King, a cardiologist and board certified physician of internal medicine, worked with him opening 36 offices along the eastern seaboard. Elisa DiFalco of The MLD Institute worked directly with Dr. Michael King for many years and instructing for the past 15 years.
Explanation of MLD
The circulatory system is comprised of veins, arteries and lymphatic tissue. Disorders of lymph flow often lead to serious diseases. The most frequent is lymphedema of the limbs. Lymph is produced from tissue fluid which flows through gaps in the lymph vessels and transported to lymph collectors to regional lymph nodes. Valve pulsation determines the direction of the flow like a pump. If transport, concentration and filtration do not occur properly, lymphedema occurs, which is a chronic disease with a tendency to progression and can affect all parts of the body, but most often the limbs. Left untreated, lymphedema can assume gigantic proportions and undergo degeneration. The body consists of 650-750 Lymph Nodes. They perform 2 functions: (1) filtering debris and (2) producing new lymphocytes to send throughout the body. Manual lymph drainage moves the drainage into edema free regions where it can be removed from the body. These are located very close under the skin and generally move 10-12 beats per minute. However, after an MLD treatment, the flow increases to 100-120 beats per minute for up to 48 hours after just one treatment and rids the body of these toxins and debris through elimination. Many advanced cases require special fitting garments and bandaging aiding compression. Patient education and instruction is an important element and necessary for optimal recovery.
There are 3 stages of edema (1) Spontaneous Reversible, (2) Spontaneous Irreversible and (3) Lymphastatic Elephantitis. If edema is only on one side, it is lymphatic. When on both sides, then it is said to be systemic.
Contraindications:
Malignant Tumors, Acute Inflammation, DVTs, Cardiac Related Edema, CHF, Kidney Disease, 1st Trimester of pregnancy or high risk pregnancies (not until after delivery).
Dr. Vodder is considered the “Father” of Manual Lymphatic Drainage (MLD). He was looking for a way to improve sinus drainage from facial surgeries in his practice in Germany. Dr. Robert Lerner was a New York Surgeon who had been using pneumatic pumps to relieve edema in 1972. He traveled to Germany in the early 1980s to study under Dr. Vodder and brought his treatments to the United States. Dr. Michael King, a cardiologist and board certified physician of internal medicine, worked with him opening 36 offices along the eastern seaboard. Elisa DiFalco of The MLD Institute worked directly with Dr. Michael King for many years and instructing for the past 15 years.
Explanation of MLD
The circulatory system is comprised of veins, arteries and lymphatic tissue. Disorders of lymph flow often lead to serious diseases. The most frequent is lymphedema of the limbs. Lymph is produced from tissue fluid which flows through gaps in the lymph vessels and transported to lymph collectors to regional lymph nodes. Valve pulsation determines the direction of the flow like a pump. If transport, concentration and filtration do not occur properly, lymphedema occurs, which is a chronic disease with a tendency to progression and can affect all parts of the body, but most often the limbs. Left untreated, lymphedema can assume gigantic proportions and undergo degeneration. The body consists of 650-750 Lymph Nodes. They perform 2 functions: (1) filtering debris and (2) producing new lymphocytes to send throughout the body. Manual lymph drainage moves the drainage into edema free regions where it can be removed from the body. These are located very close under the skin and generally move 10-12 beats per minute. However, after an MLD treatment, the flow increases to 100-120 beats per minute for up to 48 hours after just one treatment and rids the body of these toxins and debris through elimination. Many advanced cases require special fitting garments and bandaging aiding compression. Patient education and instruction is an important element and necessary for optimal recovery.
There are 3 stages of edema (1) Spontaneous Reversible, (2) Spontaneous Irreversible and (3) Lymphastatic Elephantitis. If edema is only on one side, it is lymphatic. When on both sides, then it is said to be systemic.
Contraindications:
Malignant Tumors, Acute Inflammation, DVTs, Cardiac Related Edema, CHF, Kidney Disease, 1st Trimester of pregnancy or high risk pregnancies (not until after delivery).
