What is an elephant disease?

This disease has other names. These are elephantiasis, lymphostasis, lymphedema, elephantiasis. In most cases, it affects the hands and feet. In more rare cases, the person, the genitals, the mammary glands, the peritoneum region suffer. The elephantiasis is accompanied by a bad outflow of lymph. This leads to edema and the appearance in the skin layers of fibrous changes.

Elephant Disease: Causes

With an elephant disease, the small vessels are squeezed, and the outflow of lymph is more difficult. An elephant can be both acquired and congenital. Congenital is almost always combined with kidney disease. Acquired elephantiasis almost always appears due to tumors and other pathologies of lymph nodes, bruises and damage to blood vessels through which lymph moves.

For reasons, you can also include varicose, erysipelas and other such diseases. The disease can also be caused by parasites that have fallen into the lymph nodes. There are many reasons, but the essence always remains the same. With elephant disease, the products of tissue metabolism cease to be removed from the body. The result is swelling.

Ivory Illness: Symptoms

In the beginning the disease is very difficult to recognize. His first symptoms are as follows:

- thickening of the folds of the skin;
- small swelling;
- pallor of the skin;
- subcutaneous "mesh" of veins disappears;
- Dense edema appears.

An increase in the feet is an alarming symptom of an elephant disease. You can see it on shoes: it will suddenly become small (or, for example, only one shoe will become small).

The first swelling, as a rule, is soft to the touch. With pressure, no pits remain. In most cases, elephantiasis is one-sided. That is, only half of the body suffers. If you start the disease, then swelling will cease to disappear and will be permanent. Ailment can lead to loss of efficiency. It is highly recommended not to run.

Elephant disease: treatment

In many respects the success of the entire treatment will depend on the mood of the patient himself. If the disease is started - only surgery can help. Usually, doctors try to cure the disease that caused the elephant disease. This leads to the elimination of it.

What can help relieve or even eliminate the symptoms of an elephant disease:

1) Lymph drainage massage can help. It can be manual or mechanical. Light strokes contribute to the outflow of fluid. Shaking is also used.

2) Bandage. As a rule, they are wound on the damaged area of the body and left for the night. Apply them best after a massage.

3) Laser therapy is considered effective.

4) Physical exercises.

5) Special diet.

It is important that the patient's psychological condition always remains normal. People, seeing how their body is changing for the better, can start to panic. Excess stress can be detrimental to the condition of the whole organism. It can also provoke the rapid development of the disease. Under stress, metabolic processes slow down. Stagnation of fluid increases, and lymph begins to accumulate even faster.

To prevent an elephant disease, you can use herbs. A good tool is a decoction of the roots of elecampane and dandelion. Use it for compresses. You can put them before bed or all night.

You can also use potato compresses. Compresses from radish, tomatoes, cucumbers are admissible. For prevention, you can also use essential oils of mint, lavender.

The disease does not often occur, which means that not everyone knows what it is. Many people mistakenly think that the edema will come on their own. Unwillingness to consult a doctor can cause quite a lot of problems.