Anasarca

Can include:

• Periorbital edema "eye puffiness"
• Perioral edema
• Upper extremity edema
• Ascites
• Lower extremity edema
• Pre-tibial edema
• Pedal edema

Can include:

• Impaired vision, difficulty opening eyes
• Shortness of breath (SOB), dyspnea on exertion (DOE), orthopnea
• Chest pain
• Extreme discomfort
• Debilitation

• Liver failure[2]
• Kidney failure[3]
• Right-sided heart failure

• Severe protein deficiency[4]

• Nephrotic syndrome[5]
• Protein-losing enteropathies[6]
• Capillary leak syndrome[7]

In Hb Barts, the high oxygen affinity results in poor oxygen delivery to peripheral tissues, resulting in anasarca.

It can also be caused by the administration of exogenous intravenous fluid.

Although there is no definitive test to prove anasarca, many tests can be useful to aid in the diagnosis. Anasarca is most often seen in conjunction with a low level of albumin

Recent studies have demonstrated a linkage between low-voltage electrocardiogram (ECG) (LVE) (QRS complexes of <5 mm in the limb and <10 mm in the precordial leads) and Anasarca.[8]

One of the mainstays of any edema treatment, diuretics are a category of medications that help the body excrete fluid by altering the way in which the kidney processes urine.

• Loop diuretics
• Thiazide diuretics
• Thiazide-like diuretics
• Potassium-sparing diuretics

The body more efficiently absorbs fluid from the gut and retains that fluid with the help of sodium and sugar. As such, decreasing salt and simple sugar intake will help prevent accumulation of fluid and potentiate the effect of any diuretics. Following a high protein diet will help provide one's body with the substrates necessary to produce albumin, the major protein in human plasma and the single most important molecule in maintaining the serum oncotic pressure.

Bulking fiber, both soluble and insoluble dietary fiber, absorb water throughout the GI tract. Viscous fiber can thicken the contents of the GI track and slow the absorption of other compounds (like simple sugars).