Senior Lecturer, Cardiff School of Sport and Health Sciences, Cardiff Metropolitan University.
Reflexologist, Trainer in Reflexology Lymphatic Drainage, Newport, South Wales.
Br J Community Nurs. 2020 Oct 1;25(Sup10):S6-S11. doi: 10.12968/bjcn.2020.25.Sup10.S6.
Reflexology lymph drainage (RLD) for breast cancer-related lymphoedema (BCRL) may have a positive impact on arm swelling and pain. Thermal imaging is a means of tracking temperature change by visual images. This study aimed to explore the use of thermal imaging in treatment for BCRL. The swollen arms of two participants with BCRL were photographed using a thermal imaging camera during a single RLD treatment. Limb Volume Circumferential Measurement (LVCM) of both arms was taken before, after and the next day. The images were examined for visual changes, and temperature data were extracted. Images showed differences in temperature within the affected hand and arm over 45 minutes. LVCM data indicated a loss of limb volume in the affected arm in both cases, which continued to decrease over 24 hours. Thus, thermal imaging may be useful in tracking temperature change during treatment for BCRL.
反射学淋巴引流（RLD）治疗乳腺癌相关淋巴水肿（BCRL）可能对手臂肿胀和疼痛有积极影响。热成像技术是一种通过视觉图像跟踪温度变化的方法。本研究旨在探讨热成像在 BCRL 治疗中的应用。对两名 BCRL 患者的肿胀手臂在单次 RLD 治疗过程中使用热成像相机进行拍照。在治疗前、治疗后和次日对双臂进行肢体周径测量（LVCM）。检查图像以观察视觉变化并提取温度数据。图像显示，在 45 分钟内，受影响的手部和手臂内的温度存在差异。LVCM 数据表明，在这两种情况下，受影响手臂的肢体体积都有损失，并且在 24 小时内持续减少。因此，热成像可能有助于在 BCRL 治疗过程中跟踪温度变化。
