Care to Elephantiasis and Swelling of Filarial Leg

For patients suffering from Elephantiasis requires to take care of their hygiene which is the most important aspect. Because if they don't keep their body parts clean, it will be the source of infection and that will lead to fresh attack of Filarial disease. That means further damage of their effected parts. On each attack it leaves some edema in the effected part.

Foot care
Filarial patients require to keep their foot clean. They should keep legs and specially the web area clean by means of soap and use betadine lotion and clean and then dry with towel and use dryer. They should always wear foot ware, their foot ware should not be tight because it might damage the legs and cause injury and which in turn lead to infection. One must remember that when they have infection and the leg is swollen they should not use shoes, but wear loose slippers, so that the leg is not further injured.

Elevation of bed
They should sleep in bed with 15 to 25 degree elevated at the leg area. The elevation should be gradually increased from the thigh to the foot. They should use soft padding of elevations. One can use bricks or wooden blocks of 4 to 6 inches in height, this they can use at the leg side of the bed. So that the bed will have gradual elevation. This will help the patients for drainage of limp fluid at night. What ever limp fluid that have accumulated in the morning and day time can be totally drained.

Pressure bandage
Filarial patients, who have pitting edema, should use good pressure bandages or pressure garments, which are specially designed for this purpose. These bandages or pressure garments helps in drainage of limp fluid which also helps the limp glands and the accumulation is reduced to minimum. It also helps the patients from getting external injury. These garments or bandages are used and over it one can wears trousers or other dress, so that it is not visible. These pressure garments or bandages should be used while moving but not at the bed time.

No Injury
As a filarial patients should take utmost care for not getting injury of any short , because this will lead to secondary infection which will trigger fresh filarial attack. Suppose they get injury then immediately they should consult a doctor and take antibiotic, which will suppress the secondary infection.

Regular use of long acting antibiotic
It is advised that a filarial patient should always keep cover of a long acting antibiotic such as LA6 or LA12 every week or every 15 days, depends up on the case. Which slowly increased to month basis, there is no fresh attack of filarial. This will keep a cover to the patient from getting secondary infection.

Use of benocide or hetrazine
Patients should use the above drugs for 10 days every month the dosage depends on the body weight of the patient. Thumb rule is 10 to 15% of body weight determines the dosage of the drug. This drug should be administered along with antistamines like Avil 25 mg or any other antistamines, so that there are no side effect. This drug is taken three times daily for 10 days every month.

Cleaning of legs
Every time the patient comes from outside he should get cleaned with Luke warm water and few drops of betadine lotion. The cleaning from thigh area up to foot. A mild medical soap should be applied like lifebuoy or Neko soap, thoroughly including the web area. The patient should sit on a stool and some one else should ideally clean both the foot. And then dried as described earlier. Precaution should be taken that one who cleans does not have big nails, which may cause injury. But one should see that there is no eruption or leakage of limp fluid while washing the legs.

Loose clothing
The filarial patient should not wear tight cloths over the infected area, their clothing should be such that it does not injure the legs and air is passed and the leg remains dry every time, which prevents from bacterial or fungal growth.

Elevation of legs while viewing TV
The patient legs should be elevated and kept on a stool with soft cloth padding, so there is no fluid accumulation while viewing TV. Reason of taking such precaution so that the patient legs remain in a reversible state and can be kept in a normal size and shape. At office or place of work patient should see that his legs are raised, so that there is no accumulation of limp fluid.

Food
It is advisable for filarial patient to have small but number of times so that there is no acidity, they should also have plenty of water and fresh green, and fibrous vegetables so that there is no constipation and thus preventing from injury of delicate parts of the body. Patient should always have food by 6 to 7 in the evening time so that by the time the patient sleeps, his food is digested. It is advisable that the patient eats roti or chapattis instead of rice both the times in lunch and dinner, but it becomes must that the patient eats only roti at the dinner time. They should always eat fresh hot food no stale or cool food.

Always sleep under mosquito net
It is advisable for the patient to sleep under a good aerated mosquito net thus preventing fresh infection of filarial infection, which is by mosquito bite. It is a good idea that the patient wears full garments so that no mosquito bites any time. Whether in house, office, or any other place.

A filarial patient with pitting edema if observes the above tips will prevent from getting Elephantiasis. Elephantiasis is a state when the patient effected parts, fluid turns in to fibrous tissues and becomes hard slowly, then that state is called ,non pitting edema or Elephantiasis . Which is irreversible process, and the patient's effected part looses shape size. Then only surgical correction can be done to reduce the fibrous tissues. First sino-nodal operation is done where a channel is done which will help some of the fluid to go to limp channel. And then the effected part is given pressure by means of pressure gauge for few days and de-bulking is done on the effected part first on one side then after 3 months on the other side. So that size of the effected part is reduced and pressure garments are stitched taking the patient size. This helps in keeping the effected part to some size.

In order that filarial edema does not turn in to Elephantiasis, one should always follow the above advice. In short prevention is better than cure.