Ten Measurements That Can Reduce Anxiety in Physicians and Their Patients Undergoing Breast Augmentation Surgery

There are numerous measuring systems that practitioners employ as part of their presurgical assessment for breast implant surgery. These range from direct measurements of patients using a tape measure, to assessment of standardized photographs and 3-dimensional scanning technologies. This personal view describes the authors system, developed over 20 years. The data yielded have assisted in assessing breast symmetry, ptosis, and match of implant to patient, with proven benefits for managing patient outcomes and expectations. It is simple, rapid to undertake, and requires inexpensive measuring equipment to provide useful data.

Implants versus Lipograft – Analysis of Long-Term Results after Congenital Breast Asymmetry Procedure

Congenital breast asymmetry represents a particular challenge to the classical techniques of plastic surgery due to a young group of patients. This study compares traditional breast augmentation using silicone implants to the more innovative lipograft technique regarding long-term results. To achieve this, we not only captured subjective parameters like satisfaction with outcome and symmetry, but also objective parameters such as breast volume and anthropometric measurements. Objective examination was performed manually and by using the Vectra® H2 photogrammetry scanning system. Patients who underwent implant augmentation and lipograft both showed no significant differences in patient´s satisfaction with surgical outcome (p = 0.55) and symmetry (p = 0.69). Furthermore, a breast symmetry of 93 % in both groups was reported. Likewise, no statistically significant volume difference between left and right breast was observed in both groups (p<0.41). However, on average, lipograft patients needed 1.3 procedures more until the desired result was achieved. In contrast, patients treated with implant-based breast augmentation usually need several implant changes during their life. In conclusion, both methods should be considered for patients with congenital breast asymmetry.

The Impact of Breast Symmetry on Eye Movement and Gaze Pattern: An Eye-Tracking Investigation

Background The objective assessment of beauty is challenging and subject to current research efforts. Recently, a new means of objectively determining the aesthetic appeal of body features has been investigated by analyzing gaze patterns and eye movements. Objectives The objective of this study was to assess differences in observers’ gaze patterns presented with standardized 3-dimensional images with different degrees of breast asymmetry using objective eye-tracking technology. Methods A total of 83 Caucasian study participants with a mean age of 38.60 (19.8) years were presented with 5 images depicting varying degrees of breast symmetry. In addition to the assessment of eye movements, participants were asked to rate the aesthetic appeal and the asymmetry of the breasts on a 5-point Likert scale. Results Overall, the data show that participants rating of the breasts’ aesthetic appeal was inversely related to the level of asymmetry. Time until fixation was shortest for the image depicting the greatest breast asymmetry (50 cc) with 0.77 (0.7), p <0.001. In addition, the mammary region was also viewed longest in this image with 3.76 (0.5) seconds, p < 0.001. A volume difference of 35 cc between breasts deflected the observers’ gaze significantly toward the larger of the asymmetrical breasts, p<0.001. Conclusions Surgeons should focus on symmetrical breast volume (ie, differences < 35 cc between breasts) to avoid noticeable asymmetry with regard to breast size.