OBJECTIVE: To investigate symptoms and functional impairment in women with secondary lymphoedema of the breast following surgical treatment and to assess the therapeutic benefit of treatment with low-intensity and extremely low-frequency electrostatic fields (deep oscillation), supplementing manual lymphatic drainage. METHODS: Twenty-one patients were randomized either to the treatment group (n = 11): 12 sessions of manual lymphatic drainage supplemented by deep oscillation, or to the control group (n = 10): manual lymphatic drainage alone. Assessment included subjective pain and swelling evaluation, range of motion of the shoulder and the cervical spine, and analysis of breast volume using a 3D measuring system. RESULTS: Patients had high pain and swelling scores at baseline. Shoulder mobility was impaired in all patients; restriction of cervical spine mobility was common at baseline and declined further in the control group. Deep oscillation resulted in significant pain reduction in the treatment group. The subjective reported reduction of swelling in both groups was confirmed objectively by 3D measurement only in the treatment group. CONCLUSION: Additional deep oscillation supplementary to manual lymphatic drainage can significantly enhance pain alleviation and swelling reduction in patients with secondary breast lymphoedema compared with manual lymphatic drainage alone.

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