The effect of upper limb lymphedema in posture of patients after breast cancer surgery

BACKGROUND: Upper limb lymphedema is one of the complications following breast cancer-related surgery. It is a fact that there are alterations in posture of the trunk following surgery, however, there is not much data on whether upper limb lymphedema has any effect on body posture. OBJECTIVES: The main purpose of the study was to investigate the effect of upper limb lymphedema in the trunk posture and spine mobility of patients following breast cancer surgery. METHODS: Twenty-seven women with lymphedema and 29 women without lymphedema with mastectomy or breast-conserving surgery participated in the study. Posture was evaluated by the New York Posture Rating Chart and spinal stability and thoracic mobility were evaluated by the Spinal Mouse device. RESULTS: Posture and spine posture scores were significantly higher in the without lymphedema group (p = 0.004; 0.041; respectively). There was a significant difference between the groups in terms of lateral (p < 0.001) and posterior (p < 0.001) view of shoulders, spine (p = 0.027), upper (p < 0.001) and lower back (p = 0.009), and trunk postures (p = 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: Body posture and spine are more affected due to upper limb lymphedema following breast cancer surgery. Alterations of posture mainly occur on shoulders, spine, upper and lower back, and trunk, but not on head and neck postures.