A New Secondary Chronic Lymphedema Rat Model Improved by High-Fat Diet

Purpose: Secondary chronic lymphedema is a complication that seriously affects the quality of life of cancers survivors which is urgent to be studied. However, the current animal models generally have some defects such as short duration that affect the research process. To acquire an animal model which is easier to accomplish as well as higher success rate is the main goal of our experiment. Methods: The hind limb model of rats with secondary chronic lymphedema was established by near infrared fluorescence-guided lymphatic system destruction combined with high-fat diet innovation. The model was evaluated by limb circumference, volume, near-infrared fluorescence imaging of lymphatic vessels, and a series of histopathological staining. Results: The model was successfully established by operation combined with a high-fat diet and kept persistent effective lasting up to 16 weeks. Compared with the normal diet group, the high-fat group received a higher success rate (77.77% vs. 55.55%), a more obvious degree of limb swelling, and a more significant level of subcutaneous inflammatory factor infiltration at the edema site. Based on it, we kept research and found out that there was no significant difference in the process of subcutaneous fibrosis between the two groups. Conclusions: High-fat diet may improve secondary chronic lymphedema rat model success rate as well as effectiveness by changing the level of inflammatory infiltration in the site of lymphedema.