We are looking into what causes edema, signs and symptoms and how to prevent it.

Edema is swelling caused by excess fluid trapped in your body’s tissues. Although edema can affect any part of your body, it’s most commonly noticed in the hands, arms, feet, ankles and legs.

Edema can be the result of medication, pregnancy or an underlying disease — often heart failure, kidney disease or cirrhosis of the liver.

Taking medication to remove excess fluid and reducing the amount of salt in your food often relieves edema. When edema is a sign of an underlying disease, the disease itself requires separate treatment.

SYMPTOMS OF EDEMA

Signs and symptoms of edema include:
Swelling or puffiness of the tissue directly under your skin
Stretched or shiny skin
Skin that retains a dimple after being pressed for several seconds
Increased abdominal size
When to see a doctor

Make an appointment to see your doctor if you have swelling, stretched or shiny skin, or skin that retains a dimple after being pressed. Seek immediate medical attention if you experience:
Shortness of breath
Difficulty breathing
Chest pain

These symptoms can be a sign of pulmonary edema, which requires prompt treatment.

If you’ve been sitting for a prolonged period, such as on a long flight, and you develop swelling and pain in a leg that won’t go away, call your doctor. Persistent leg pain and swelling can be a sign of a blood clot deep in your veins (deep vein thrombosis, or DVT).

CAUSES OF EDEMA

Edema occurs when tiny blood vessels in your body (capillaries) leak fluid. The fluid builds up in surrounding tissues, leading to swelling.

Mild cases of edema may result from:
Sitting or staying in one position for too long
Eating too much salty food
Premenstrual signs and symptoms
Pregnancy

Edema can be a side effect of some medications, including:
High blood pressure medications
Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs
Steroid drugs
Estrogens
Certain diabetes medications called thiazolidinediones

In some cases, however, edema may be a sign of a more serious underlying medical condition. Diseases and conditions that may cause edema include:
Congestive heart failure. When one or both of your heart’s lower chambers lose their ability to pump blood effectively — as happens in congestive heart failure — the blood can back up in your legs, ankles and feet, causing edema. Heart failure can also cause swelling in your abdomen. Sometimes it can cause fluid to accumulate in your lungs (pulmonary edema), which can lead to shortness of breath.
Cirrhosis. Fluid may accumulate in your abdominal cavity (ascites) and in your legs as a result of liver damage (cirrhosis).
Kidney disease. When you have kidney disease, extra fluid and sodium in your circulation may cause edema. The edema associated with kidney disease usually occurs in your legs and around your eyes.
Kidney damage. Damage to the tiny, filtering blood vessels in your kidneys can result in nephrotic syndrome. In nephrotic syndrome, declining levels of protein (albumin) in your blood can lead to fluid accumulation and edema.
Weakness or damage to veins in your legs. Chronic venous insufficiency, in which the one-way valves in your leg veins are weakened or damaged, allows blood to pool in the leg veins and cause swelling. Abrupt onset of swelling in one leg accompanied by pain in your calf can be due to a clot in one of your leg veins. Seek medical help promptly.
Inadequate lymphatic system. Your body’s lymphatic system helps clear excess fluid from tissues. If this system is damaged — for example, by cancer surgery — the lymph nodes and lymph vessels draining an area may not work correctly and edema results.

RISK FACTORS

Due to the fluid needed by the fetus and placenta, a pregnant woman’s body retains more sodium and water than usual, increasing the risk of edema.

Your risk of edema may be increased if you take certain medications, including:
High blood pressure medications
Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs
Steroid drugs
Estrogens
Certain diabetes medications called thiazolidinediones

If you have a chronic illness such as heart failure, liver or kidney disease, your risk of edema increases, as well. Surgery can sometimes obstruct a lymph node, leading to swelling in an arm or leg, usually on just one side.

COMPLICATIONS

If left untreated, edema can cause:
Increasingly painful swelling
Difficulty walking
Stiffness
Stretched skin, which can become itchy and uncomfortable
Increased risk of infection in the swollen area
Scarring between layers of tissue
Decreased blood circulation
Decreased elasticity of arteries, veins, joints and muscles
Increased risk of skin ulcers

PREPARING FOR YOUR APPOINTMENT

Unless you’re already under a specialist’s care for a current medical condition, you’ll probably start by seeing your family doctor or regular health care provider to begin evaluation for what could be causing your symptoms.

Here’s some information to help you prepare for your appointment, and what to expect from your doctor.
What you can do
Be aware of any pre-appointment restrictions. At the time you make the appointment, be sure to ask if there’s anything you need to do in advance to prepare for common diagnostic tests.
Write down any symptoms you’re experiencing, including any that may seem unrelated to the reason for which you scheduled the appointment.
Make a list of your key medical information, including any other conditions for which you’re being treated, and the names of any medications, vitamins or supplements you’re taking.
Consider questions to ask your doctor and write them down. Bring along notepaper and a pen to jot down information as your doctor addresses your questions.

For edema, some basic questions to ask your doctor include:
What are the possible causes of my symptoms?
What kinds of tests do I need? Do these tests require any special preparation?
Is my condition temporary?
Will I need treatment?
What treatments are available?
I have other medical problems; will this treatment interfere with them?
Do you have any brochures or other printed material that I can take home with me? What websites do you recommend visiting?