Edema – colloquially called water retention – (synonyms: Leg edema; edema; fluid retention; oedema; lower leg edema; water retention; edema; ICD-10-GM R60.-: Edema, not elsewhere classified) literally means “tissue dropsy” (Greek οἴδημα “swelling” or “dropsy”). It is a pathological (pathological), visible increase in interstitial fluid volume (fluid accumulation in the interstitial space).
Several forms of edema can be distinguished:
- Allergic edema
- Angioedema (vascular edema)
- Endocrine edema – caused by hormonal disorders.
- Inflammatory edema
- Hepatogenic edema – caused by liver disease.
- Cachectic edema – in consumptive (wasting) diseases such as tuberculosis or tumor diseases (cancer).
- Lymphedema – visible and palpable accumulation of fluid in the interstitium (intercellular space); it is caused by mechanical insufficiency (weakness) of the lymphatic vascular system.
- Premenstrual edema – associated with the female cycle.
- Renal edema – caused by kidney disease.
- Congestive edema – localized or generalized in heart disease.
Edema can be further subdivided:
- Into low-protein and high-protein* edema.
- According to the localization:
- Generalized (always symmetrically applied edema).
- Localized unilateral or bilateral edema; found first on the dependent parts of the body (in the ambulatory patient in the ankle region and pretibial (located in front of the tibia) and in the supine patient in the coccyx region)
- Peripheral edema – found in dependent parts of the body (ankle, lower leg, in bedridden patients also sacral (“referred to the sacrum (Os sacrum)”))
- According to the palpation findings:
- Impressible
- Not retractable
- After consistency
- Soft
- Indurated (“hardened”)
* The edema is doughy-soft, it can be easily pressed in a “dent” with a finger.
Gender ratio: women are more often affected than men.In the context of premenstrual syndrome (PMS; occurs in women about four to fourteen days before the next period) may be hormonally induced water retention.
Course and prognosis: The course and prognosis depend on the underlying cause and the form of the edema. If the cause is removed, edema will regress completely without consequences. Chronic edema can lead to tissue changes such as hyperpigmentation (increased pigmentation of the skin) and ulceration (ulcers).
