When you wear tight socks or shoes and see lines on your feet and ankles at the end of the day, you probably have a swelling problem. And I can relate!

I took off my compression socks after working in them, on my feet all day, and after an hour or so (puttering around the kitchen, making some dinner, and now sitting at my computer with my legs down (not elevated), I press my finger into a “cuff” around my ankle. What do I see? A small indentation that stays put for a second. This is why I try to get in several hours of exercise each week, and wear compression socks every day… because swelling in my lower legs is an ongoing problem.

While pitting edema and non-pitting edema both indicate underlying health issues, pitting edema can sometimes be seen as having certain “advantages" in terms of diagnosis, treatment and prognosis compared to non-pitting edema. Here are the top five “good news” aspects of having pitting edema versus non pitting edema.

First, pitting edema is swelling that ...