Te Awamutu CWL backs health education event

Medical professionals from Te Awamutu and Ōtorohanga attended a wine and cheese evening earlier this month at St Patrick’s Catholic Church lounge and heard from lipoedema patient advocate Fiona O’Brien.

Lipoedema is a lymphatic disorder in which abnormal levels of painful fat build up disproportionately in certain areas of the body, most commonly the hips, buttocks and in the legs. Ms O’Brien educated attendees about the disease and showed them a newly published first medical textbook about lipoedema.

The textbook is an evidence-based guide to current understanding of lipoedema, its causes and possible treatments, addressing what is known through human studies, what is unknown and needs investigating, and what is likely to emerge.

All medical professionals at the event received the book, courtesy of Hugo Charitable Trust.

“One of my biggest goals is to make more people aware of lipoedema and help them get diagnosed sooner,” Ms O’Brien said.

The disease almost exclusively affects women, who may seek help for years only to be met with ongoing anti-fat stereotyping. Its significant life-changing impact has only recently been recognised, clinically and in terms of research funding.

“It is not obesity. You don’t have to be a particular size to have the condition,” Ms O’Brien said.

“This disease is driven significantly by inflammation. That inflammation could be related to certain foods, medicines or hormonal changes. The disease is mostly seen in women, so hormones are another important element.”

Ms O’Brien said the idea behind the evening was to broaden the medical professionals’ knowledge so they can begin investigating the condition.

“This textbook takes lipoedema from being dismissed as an ‘internet disease’ and brings it into mainstream medicine.”

FULL STORY

Explaining the ‘internet’ disease (By Jesse Wood/Te Awamutu News)