Effects of clinical pilates exercises on patients developing lymphedema after breast cancer treatment

JOINT EVENT:19^th Euro Congress on Cancer Science and Therapy & 25^th Cancer Nursing & Nurse Practitioners Conference

July 17-19, 2017 Lisbon, Portugal

Hulya Ozlem Sener

Fisioterapia Consultancy of Exercise Training, Turkey

Posters & Accepted Abstracts: J Cancer Sci Ther

Abstract :

Objective: The aim of the present study is to compare the effects of clinical pilates exercises with those of the standard lymphedema exercises on lymphedema developing after breast cancer treatment. Materials & Methods: The study comprised 60 female patients with a mean age of 53.2�±7.7 years who developed lymphedema after having breast cancer treatment. The patients were randomized into two groups: the clinical pilates exercise group (n=30) and the control group (n=30). Before and at the 8th week of the treatment, the following were measured: severity of the lymphedema, limb circumferences with a tape measure, body image with the social appearance anxiety scale, quality of life with the EORTC QLQ-BR23 and the upper extremity functions with the DASH. Both groups did one-hour exercises three days a week for 8 weeks. Results: After the treatment, the symptoms recovered significantly in both groups. Reductions in the severity of lymphedema, improvements in the social appearance anxiety scale scores, quality of life scores and upper extremity functions scores in the clinical Pilates exercise group were further than those in the control group. Clinical pilates exercises were determined to be more effective on the symptoms of patients with lymphedema than were standard lymphedema exercises. Conclusions: Clinical pilates exercises could be considered a safe model and would contribute to treatment programs.

Biography :

Email: hulyacakmur@gmail.com