The lipoedema

Lipoedema is a fat distribution disorder and occurs almost exclusively in women. From today’s medical point of view, there is a chronic disease of the subcutaneous fatty tissue. The first symptoms often develop during puberty or after a hormonal change, such as pregnancy or menopause (menopause).

stages of lipedema

In order to describe the structure of the tissue and the texture of the skin, lipoedema is divided into three stages. The degree of severity is classified by palpation and the surface of the skin. The individual pain level is not taken into account in this classification.

Lipödem Stadium 1

Stage I

Skin surface smooth, subcutaneous fat tissue evenly thickened, fat structure finely knotted

Lipödem Stadium 2

stage II

Skin surface uneven, mostly wavy, fat structure coarse knots

Lipödem Stadium 3

Stage III

Pronounced increase in circumference with overhanging tissue parts

In addition, the lipoedema disease is classified according to the localization of the affected areas. (according to Herpertz 2014)

Legs poor
  • thigh type
  • upper arm type
  • full leg type
  • whole sleeve type
  • lower leg type
  • forearm type

However, the distribution pattern of the affected areas is usually a mixture of the types mentioned above. The structure of the adipose tissue changes over time, so that the progression of the disease can be classified according to the structure of the subcutaneous adipose tissue.