[citation needed] Manual lymphatic drainage techniques remain a clinical art founded upon hypotheses, theory, and preliminary evidence.
[1] The term lymphatic pump was invented by Earl Miller, D.O.
to describe what was formerly known in osteopathic medicine as the thoracic pump technique.
[2] The technique is applied to a person lying down by holding their ankle and applying gentle pressure repeatedly using the leg as a "lever" to rock the pelvis.
[3] While no firmly established absolute contraindications exist for lymphatic techniques, the following cases are examples of relative contraindications: bone fractures, bacterial infections with fever, abscesses, and cancer.