Letter to the Editor
Copyright ©The Author(s) 2025. Published by Baishideng Publishing Group Inc. All rights reserved.
World J Clin Cases. Apr 26, 2025; 13(12): 98825
Published online Apr 26, 2025. doi: 10.12998/wjcc.v13.i12.98825
Enhancing outcomes in severe lymphedema through combined treatment strategies
Aidan Shulkin, Johnny I Efanov
Aidan Shulkin, Johnny I Efanov, Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, Department of Surgery, Centre hospitalier de l’Université de Montréal, Montreal H2X3E4, Quebec, Canada
Author contributions: Shulkin A generated conceptualization, designed the study, and also contributed to the acquisition of data and its initial analysis; Efanov JI oversaw the entire project, ensured the accuracy of the analysis, and provided final approval of the version to be published; and all authors drafted the manuscript and revised it critically.
Conflict-of-interest statement: All the authors report no relevant conflicts of interest for this article.
Open-Access: This article is an open-access article that was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution NonCommercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: https://creativecommons.org/Licenses/by-nc/4.0/
Corresponding author: Johnny I Efanov, Associate Professor, MD, PhD, Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, Department of Surgery, Centre hospitalier de l’Université de Montréal, 1051 Rue Sanguinet, Montreal H2X3E4, Quebec, Canada. johnny.ionut.efanov@umontreal.ca
Received: July 6, 2024
Revised: November 19, 2024
Accepted: December 17, 2024
Published online: April 26, 2025
Processing time: 184 Days and 14.3 Hours
Core Tip

Core Tip: This article highlights the effectiveness of combined therapy, particularly complex decongestive therapy and lymphovenous anastomosis, in treating severe deformed lymphedema, as demonstrated in a case report by Wang et al. The patient achieved significant improvements without reductive surgery, underscoring the potential of integrating conservative and minimally invasive treatments. The report emphasizes the need for continued research to optimize and standardize combined treatment protocols, considering both the benefits and limitations of current therapeutic approaches.