TUESDAY, Sept. 29, 2020 — Surgical treatment of breast asymmetry in young women yields significant and sustained improvements in psychosocial quality of life, according to a study published in the October issue of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery.

Laura C. Nuzzi, from Boston Children’s Hospital and Harvard Medical School, and colleagues assessed postoperative changes in health-related quality of life following surgical treatment of congenital breast asymmetry in young women. Surveys were completed at baseline and follow-up by 45 women undergoing surgical correction, as well as 101 unaffected female controls.

The researchers found that participants with breast asymmetry scored significantly worse at baseline on the Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale and in two Short-Form 36v2 domains (Social Functioning and Role-Emotional) compared with controls. Following surgery, asymmetry participants showed significant postoperative improvements on the Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale and in three Short-Form 36v2 domains (Role-Physical, Social Functioning, and Mental Health), with improvements sustained for a minimum of five years. Quality of life for asymmetry participants postoperatively was similar to that of controls and did not vary by age at the time of surgery, asymmetry severity, or diagnosis.

“Providers should be aware of the potential positive impact that surgical treatment can provide developmentally and psychologically mature young women with symptomatic asymmetry and consider surgery when nonsurgical options fail,” the authors write.

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