Significant Decrease in Glycated Hemoglobin, 2h-Post-Load Glucose and High-Sensitivity C-Reactive Protein Levels in Patients with Abnormal Body Mass Index after Therapy with Manual Lymphatic Drainage

The objective of this study was to investigate the effect of manual lymphatic drainage (MLD) on the insulin resistance parameter (HOMA-IR), glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c), C-peptide, insulin, fasting plasma glucose (FPG), 2h-post-loadglucose (2h-PG) and the concentration of high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hsCRP) in patients with abnormal body mass index. The study involved 30 patients, including patients with normal body weight (as a control group; group I; n = 14), overweight patients (group II; n = 9) and obese patients (group III; n = 7). Each patient underwent 10 sessions of MLD therapy, 3 times a week for 30 min. In addition, we measured body mass index (BMI) and waist-to-hip ratio (WHR) and performed body composition analysis as well as biochemical tests before MLD therapy (stage 0') and after MLD therapy (stage 1'). A statistically significant correlation was demonstrated between the concentration of C-peptide, BMI, the amount of visceral adipose tissue (r = 0.87, p = 0.003; r = 0.76, p = 0.003, respectively), and the HOMA-IR index, BMI and the amount of visceral adipose tissue (r = 0.86, p = 0.005; r = 0.84, p = 0.042, respectively), before and after MLD therapy. In overweight patients (group II), a statistically significant (p = 0.041) decrease in the hsCRP level by 2.9 mg/L and a significant (p = 0.050) decrease in the 2h-PG level by 12 mg/dL after the MLD therapy was detected. Moreover, in the group of obese patients (group III), a statistically significant (p = 0.013) decrease in HbA1c level by 0.2% after MLD therapy was demonstrated. Our results indicate that MLD may have a positive effect on selected biochemical parameters, with the most favorable changes in overweight patients. Further studies in a larger number of patients are warranted to confirm our findings, to test in-depth their mechanism, and to investigate clinical benefits of this alternative therapy in patients with abnormal body mass index.