Microfine garments are very popular for those with lymphoedema, being an effective means of controlling swelling of the hands and fingers, or the feet and toes. All the microfine garments are available on prescription, or directly from Haddenham HC.

The Microfine fabric is ultra-thin and smooth, and trims to fit without fraying. The Microfine garments are available as gloves or toe caps. Each garment gives medium compression of 20-36mmHg, allowing comfortable support for lymphoedema. A previous post on the benefits of compression explains the different compression “classes”, what these mean and how they will help to manage your lymphoedema.

Microfine garments are flat knit products, with gentle seams on the outside of the garment for comfort, ensuring a good fit. In order to better understand what is meant by “flat knit” garments, please refer to a previous post about the difference between circular knit and flat knit garments, where this is explained more fully. Although, Microfine garments are primarily intended for mild – moderate lymphoedema, in practice they can in fact deal with more stubborn swelling due to the upward range of their compression ability.

The soft gentle microfine fabric means that these gloves and toe caps are a good choice for those with sensitive or fragile skin. They are also easy to put on and take off (don and doff), wash and dry easily, and being discrete are aesthetically acceptable, and available in three colours.

Measuring for Microfine Gloves and Toecaps is straight forward, fitting them is not difficult, and both the Gloves and Toecaps are ambidextrous. They can be used under bandages, reducing the need to bandage digits

Donning and Doffing

Due to the softness of the fabric Microfine garments are easy to put on and take off, and the following tips should help with this:

TOECAPS

Note: Cover open wounds and remove jewelry before applying.

1. Make sure the seams on the Toecap face outward.

2. Insert toes and foot into the Toecap opening.

3. Position the Toecap so that it fits comfortably over the toes and foot

4. Work the Toecap in between your toes to the web spaces.

Trim to fit
If the toe lengths are too long, mark the toe at the appropriate length, remove the Toecap, then trim the length of the Toecap to the marked area and reapply. Be careful not to remove too much of the toe length.

How to remove
To remove - loosen by gently pulling the end of each toe of the Toecap and slide the Toecap off the foot.

GLOVES

Note: Cover open wounds and remove jewelry before applying.

1. Make sure the seams on the Glove face outward.

2. Insert fingers and hand into the opening of the Glove.

3. Position the Glove so that it fits comfortably over the fingers and the hand

4. Work the Glove in between your fingers to the web spaces.

Trim to fit
Gloves do not often need to be trimmed, but if the finger lengths are too long, mark the finger at the appropriate length, remove the Glove, then trim the length of the garment to the marked area and reapply. Be careful not to remove too much of the finger length.

How to remove
To remove - loosen by gently pulling the end of each finger of the Glove and slide the Glove off the hand.

Caring for your Microfine Garment

Microfine garments can either be washed by hand in gentle mild washing detergent, or machine washed on a low heat setting - preferably at 30 degrees Centigrade. Fabric conditioner should not be used with Microfine, as this reduces the life of the garment, and Microfine should never be tumble dried, as this will cause the garments to shrink.

About the author

Jeanne started her lymphoedema career in the early 1990s, setting up the lymphoedema clinic in Durham. She then moved into a specialist clinical role across South Durham, Teesside and North Yorkshire, and in 2013 set up the Lymphoedema Service based in Imperial Healthcare Trust at Charing Cross Hospital. Jeanne is now the Lymphoedema Nurse at St Teresa’s Hospice in Darlington, where her passion for education continues.