Fibrosis, Tissue Change and Lymphedema

Lymphedema has traditionally been regarded as a chronic, progressive disease resulting from damage to the lymphatic drainage system, resulting in the accumulation of interstitial fluid and thus tissue edema. It has been found that it is not simply due to the accumulation of lymph and body fluid in the interstitial tissue, and suggested that a complex series of processes affecting various tissue compartments are involved in the pathophysiology. Fibrosis is an excessive deposition of extracellular matrix in various organs, which may cause abnormalities in the function of the corresponding organ, and fibrosis is an important pathophysiological change in lymphedema. In this review, macroscopic, histopathological, and molecular changes in lymphedema are described.