- What This Cheat Sheet Covers (and What It Doesn't)
- Credential Snapshot: Who Issues What
- Fast-Facts Table
- The 15 Preparation Sections at a Glance
- Technique Core: Movement, Stroking, and Wrapping
- Foundations and Ancillary Topics
- Registration and Exam Mechanics
- What Is Still Unverified
- A Domain-Ordered Review Plan
- Where This Training Fits in Practice
- Frequently Asked Questions
- The NBCA Lymphedema Technician Exam is registered separately; the registration form lists a $125 fee and asks for 30 days' notice.
- The 15 preparation sections come from the Blue Heron Academy curriculum, not an official NBCA exam blueprint.
- "Repetitive Movement Technique" appears as both Section 4 and Section 11 in the source curriculum.
- Question count, duration, passing score, and pass rate were not verified, so never trust a site quoting them without a source.
What This Cheat Sheet Covers (and What It Doesn't)
This page is a compressed review of the Lymphedema Technician Certification as it is actually structured: an NBCA examination listed under the American Medical Massage Association (AMMA), with American Health Source (AHS) as the governing body. It is meant to sit beside your coursework, not replace it. If you want the long-form version, start with our Lymphedema Technician Certification study guide and the full breakdown of all 15 content areas.
One honesty note up front. The review behind this sheet was completed on October 9, 2026, using public provider and issuer pages. The curriculum PDF is currently linked by the provider but carries no verified revision or effective date, so nothing here claims a newly revised 2026 blueprint. Where a fact could not be confirmed, this sheet says so rather than guessing.
Credential Snapshot: Who Issues What
Candidates often confuse the layers of this pathway, so keep them separate:
- Governing body: American Health Source (AHS). "AHS" is the issuer acronym.
- Examination affiliate: the National Board Certification Agency (NBCA).
- Exam listing: the Lymphedema Technician exam is listed under the American Medical Massage Association (AMMA).
- Training provider: Blue Heron Academy, which AHS identifies as its model training school offering approved eLearning.
The label "Lymphedema Technician Certification" is a descriptive name rather than an official examination code. If you see a code quoted somewhere as the "official" exam code, treat it with suspicion.
Three events are distinct and easy to blur: completing the course, passing the course's own Final Examination, and registering for and sitting the national board exam. The provider's FAQ states that Lymphedema Technician graduates may take the NBCA AMMA Lymphedema national certification exam, which is why the course is the usual on-ramp. For a plain-language orientation to the name itself, see What Is Lymphedema Technician Certification?
Fast-Facts Table
| Item | What Is Verified |
|---|---|
| Governing body | American Health Source (AHS) |
| Examination affiliate | National Board Certification Agency (NBCA) |
| Exam listing | American Medical Massage Association (AMMA) |
| Registration fee | $125 per the public NBCA registration form |
| Registration timing | Register and pay 30 days before the established or requested exam date |
| Proctoring | NBCA exams are proctored through testing centers or libraries |
| Remote testing | Not established for this exact exam; verify with NBCA |
| Question count, duration, item format | Not verified |
| Passing score and pass rate | Not verified |
| NBCA exam eStudy Guide | Advertised at $40; not purchased or accessed for this review |
For deeper dives on the unverified rows, see our pages on the passing score question and what the pass-rate data does and doesn't show.
The 15 Preparation Sections at a Glance
These are the section headings from the linked curriculum, in source order. Section 16 in the course is a Final Examination, which is a course assessment and not a national-exam content domain.
- Introduction
- Homeostasis of the Lymphatic System
- General Guidelines and Recommendations for the Preventative Care and Management of Lymphedema
- Repetitive Movement Technique
- Description of Repetitive Movement Technique, The Repetitive Movement of a Joint through its Prime Plane of Motion
- Lymphedema Technique
- Compressive Stroking with Elevation
- Description of Compressive Stroking with Elevation
- Extremity Wrapping Technique
- Single Wrapping, Double Wrapping (Cross Hatched Technique)
- Repetitive Movement Technique
- Ancillary Techniques for Treatment of Lymphedema
- Thoracic and Intercostal Technique
- Abdominal / Pelvic Massage and Manual Therapy
- Therapeutic Breathing Exercises Used in the Treatment of Lymphedema
Technique Core: Movement, Stroking, and Wrapping
Most of the curriculum's middle stretch is hands-on technique vocabulary. A cheat sheet can't teach technique, and nothing here is a clinical treatment instruction for unsupervised care. What it can do is tell you which technique families to be able to name, describe, and distinguish.
Repetitive Movement Technique (Sections 4, 5, and 11)
This is the most repeated topic in the curriculum, appearing as two top-level headings plus a dedicated description section.
- Know the distinction between the general technique heading and the description section on moving a joint through its prime plane of motion.
- Be able to explain what "prime plane of motion" means for a given joint.
- Expect the second appearance (Section 11) to be reviewed in the context of the wrapping material that precedes it.
Lymphedema Technique and Compressive Stroking with Elevation (Sections 6 to 8)
Section 6 introduces the technique itself; Sections 7 and 8 split compressive stroking with elevation into an overview and a description.
- Be ready to separate the name of a technique from the step-by-step description of it.
- Understand why elevation is paired with stroking in this method's terminology.
Extremity Wrapping (Sections 9 and 10)
Wrapping gets an overview section and a section on specific methods.
- Know the two named approaches: single wrapping and double wrapping.
- Know that double wrapping is labeled with the cross-hatched technique in the heading.
Foundations and Ancillary Topics
Lymphatic physiology and prevention
Sections 2 and 3 are your conceptual anchors. Section 2 covers homeostasis of the lymphatic system. Section 3 covers general guidelines and recommendations for the preventative care and management of lymphedema. These also line up with the course's published learning objectives, which include the anatomy and physiology of the lymphatic system, the pathology of lymphatic conditions and disorders, and the history of lymphatic therapies.
Ancillary techniques
Sections 12 through 15 cover the ancillary side of the curriculum:
- Ancillary Techniques for Treatment of Lymphedema
- Thoracic and Intercostal Technique
- Abdominal / Pelvic Massage and Manual Therapy
- Therapeutic Breathing Exercises Used in the Treatment of Lymphedema
Because these sit at the end of the curriculum, candidates tend to rush them. The published learning objectives explicitly include reviewing the "ancillary techniques and treatment procedures for lymphatic therapy," so give them their own review block.
The Biomedicine Training Program
The provider links a Biomedicine Training Program included with all of its online education courses. Its topics are: general regional anatomy; the skeletal, muscular, integumentary, nervous, cardiovascular, lymphatic, endocrine, respiratory, digestive, urinary/excretory, and reproductive systems; special populations; general musculoskeletal pathology; therapeutic modalities and physiological effects; and an introduction to pharmacology. These are preparation subjects, not additional official examination domains or weights. Use them to shore up background knowledge, especially the cardiovascular and lymphatic system material, which supports Sections 1 to 3.
Key Takeaway
Treat the 15 sections as a coverage checklist and the Biomedicine topics as background reinforcement. Neither list is an official weighting, so don't allocate study hours based on an imagined percentage split.
Registration and Exam Mechanics
What the public NBCA form says
The NBCA Lymphedema Technician Exam has a public registration form listing a $125 fee. It requests that you register and pay 30 days before the established or requested exam date. Build your timeline backward from that window. For scheduling context, see our guide to exam dates and deadlines, and for the full money picture including course costs, see the certification cost breakdown.
Proctoring
NBCA examinations are proctored through testing centers or libraries. The NBCA page says several of its exams can use online video testing, but that statement does not establish remote availability for this exact exam. Contact NBCA to confirm current arrangements before you plan travel or assume a home-testing setup.
The 70% number: a common trap
You may see "70%" attached to this pathway. That figure belongs to separate AHS continuing education quizzes. It is not a verified NBCA Lymphedema Technician passing score. Don't write it on a flashcard as the exam's cut score.
Eligibility and prerequisites
The provider FAQ ties national exam eligibility to Lymphedema Technician course graduation. For the requirements discussion in more depth, see eligibility and prerequisites. Remember that training does not confer a professional license or expand clinical scope of practice; what you may legally do with the skills depends on your jurisdiction and existing credentials.
What Is Still Unverified
A good cheat sheet is explicit about its gaps. The following were not verified:
- The national exam's question count, time limit, and item format
- The passing score
- The current pass rate
- The contents of the $40 NBCA exam eStudy Guide, which was neither purchased nor accessed
- A revision or effective date for the curriculum PDF
The older issuer-linked bhaelearning.com URL also could not be retrieved with verified TLS, so the review relied on the provider's own current blueheronacademy.com course, curriculum, and FAQ pages. If another site quotes a precise number of questions or a precise cut score for this exam, ask for its source. For a candid discussion of difficulty given those gaps, see how hard the exam is.
A Domain-Ordered Review Plan
Since the sections are unweighted, sequence your review by how the material builds, not by assumed importance. This is one short, optional plan tied to the actual curriculum order.
Foundations (Sections 1 to 3)
- Introduction, lymphatic homeostasis, and prevention guidelines
- Pair with the Biomedicine cardiovascular and lymphatic system topics
Movement and Stroking (Sections 4 to 8)
- Repetitive Movement Technique and the prime-plane description
- Lymphedema Technique and both compressive stroking sections
Wrapping and the Second Movement Pass (Sections 9 to 11)
- Extremity wrapping; single versus double (cross-hatched) wrapping
- Review the repeated Repetitive Movement Technique heading again
Ancillary Topics and Mixed Review (Sections 12 to 15)
- Thoracic and intercostal, abdominal/pelvic, and therapeutic breathing
- Finish with original practice questions across all sections
Original practice questions are supplemental learning aids. They are not real exam questions and don't guarantee a pass. You can work through them on our main practice test site, and our broader training overview explains how coursework and exam prep fit together.
Where This Training Fits in Practice
The provider's published objectives frame the training around learning how to consult with and provide treatment to clients with lymphatic problems. No salary figures or hiring statistics for this specific credential were verified, so this sheet doesn't quote any. If you're weighing the investment, our pages on job settings, earnings considerations, and whether the certification is worth it walk through the reasoning without inventing numbers.
One caution on marketing language: provider claims that a proprietary method is superior, or that other approaches are harmful, are not independently established medical facts. Study the material as the curriculum presents it, but don't repeat those claims as settled clinical evidence.
Frequently Asked Questions
No. They are the instructional headings of the Blue Heron Academy curriculum linked from the AHS exam listing. They show provider course coverage, are unweighted, and are not an official NBCA examination blueprint.
The public NBCA registration form lists a $125 fee and requests registration and payment 30 days before the established or requested exam date. Confirm current details with NBCA before paying, since course tuition is a separate cost.
No. Course completion, the course's Final Examination, and the separately registered NBCA national board exam are three distinct steps. The Final Examination is a course assessment, not a national-exam content domain.
That is not established for this exact exam. NBCA exams are proctored through testing centers or libraries, and while the NBCA page says several exams can use online video testing, you must verify current arrangements for this one directly with NBCA.
It was not verified. The 70% threshold you may see applies to separate AHS continuing education quizzes and should not be treated as the NBCA Lymphedema Technician cut score.
For a broader orientation to the credential name and what it represents, see our overview of the certification, and revisit this cheat sheet whenever you need a quick refresher on the verified facts.