Should I ask before using compression socks for edema?
A product sheet for compression socks is read for its promise, and its caution is easy to skim past. One named source puts its caution in brackets, which makes it hard to miss once you look.
What the source tells you to do
The edema page at my.clevelandclinic.org says: "Use special shoes and garments, like compression socks (but be sure to ask your provider before using them)." So the answer is yes, ask first.
Reading the bracket literally
The sentence has two parts. The main part offers compression socks as one example of a garment, since "like" introduces an example and not the only option. The bracket sets the condition: "be sure to ask your provider before using them."
"Before" fixes the order. You ask first and wear second. "Provider" is not defined, and the line does not say what the provider checks or which sock suits which leg.
Three pages are worth a look while you decide what to ask. One covers compression stockings, one covers venous insufficiency and one covers deep vein thrombosis.
What to ask before you buy
- Which provider should I ask, and can I ask at my next visit?
- Which sock and size does my leg need?
- How many hours a day should I wear them, and for how many days?
- Does my condition change any of those answers?
If you are in Oak Lawn, ask these before the first wear and write the answers on the product sheet.
The desk's note
A bracketed caution is the part of a sentence most likely to be skipped, and here it is the part that applies to you.