Szolnoky G, Varga E, Varga M, Tuczai M, Dósa-Rácz E, Kemény L. Lymphedema treatment decreases pain intensity in lipedema. Lymphology. 2011 Dec;44(4):178-82. PMID: 22458119.

This study found that a 5-day lipedema treatment program combining manual lymph drainage, pneumatic compression, compression bandaging, skin care, and walking significantly reduced leg pain and leg volume in women with lipedema.

In this study, 38 women with bilateral leg lipedema were divided into two groups: 19 received treatment and 19 served as a control group using only daily moisturizer. The treatment group received once-daily therapy for 5 days, including 30 minutes of manual lymph drainage, 30 minutes of intermittent pneumatic compression with the Lympha Press Plus device, skin care, multilayer short-stretch bandaging, and two daily 30-minute walking sessions.
After 5 days, the treatment group had a significant average leg-volume reduction of 5.6%, while the control group did not have a significant volume change. Pain also improved significantly across all three pain-measurement tools used in the study: a lipedema pain questionnaire, a 0–10 pain rating scale, and the Wong-Baker Faces scale. The control group showed improvement only on the pain rating scale, not on the other pain measures. Overall, the study suggests that this combined conservative treatment approach can help reduce not only swelling, but also the pain that many people with lipedema experience.

Link to study: Lymphedema treatment decreases pain intensity in lipedema.