Methods/Technique: All patients seen in consultation for breast reduction between January 2008 and May 2009 were asked to fill out BREAST-Q surveys anonymously during the pre- operative and 6-week post-operative periods. Statistical analysis was performed and a p-value of <0.05 was considered significant.
Results/Complications: Forty-nine patients underwent breast reduction by a single surgeon (AT) during the study time period. The majority of patients underwent reduction with an inferior pedicle (n=33,67%) and a wise pattern incision (n=37,76%). Mean tissue resected was 650.1g(±380.2) from the right and 633.0g(±379.3) from the left. Of these patients, 38 (78%) completed the pre-reduction survey and 38 (78%) completed the post-reduction survey. Statistically significant improvements were observed in satisfaction with breast appearance, psychosocial well-being, sexual well-being and physical well-being. Satisfaction with overall outcomes most strongly correlated to satisfaction with breast appearance. Positive correlations, although less strong, were also noted regarding satisfaction with the overall outcomes and sexual well-being, psychosocial well-being, satisfaction with information, satisfaction with surgeon and physical well-being.
Conclusion: As the implementation of evidence-based medicine continues to grow in everyday practice, there is increasing pressure to use validated survey instruments to demonstrate patient reported outcomes. In this study, we have shown that breast reduction significantly improves satisfaction with breast appearance, psychosocial, sexual and physical well being, and that overall patient satisfaction is most strongly correlated with satisfaction in appearance of their breasts.