What DO Breast Surgery Patients Want?
breast augmentation, Breast Reconstruction, Breast Reduction Comments Off
What do breast surgery patients want? Short answer: Satisfaction!
With over half a million U.S. women undergoing some form of breast surgery yearly, according to the American Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS), plastic surgeons and others want to know exactly what makes breast surgery patients happy at the end of the day.
So five researchers from Canada, the United States and England interviewed 48 breast surgery patients, who had:
- 15 breast reductions
- 12 breast augmentations
- 21 breast reconstructions
The patients were chosen at random from the practices of four plastic surgery practices in Vancouver, Canada.
The basic task was for each patient to describe the condition of her breasts and how the subsequent surgery impacted their lives.
Results: Six themes came out of all the interviews, including:
- Satisfaction with breasts: Women who were happy with breast size, shape, symmetry, cleavage, scars, positioning, how natural the breasts look and feel and how the breasts fit the rest of the body were key concerns.
- Satisfaction with the overall outcome
- Psychosocial well-being: Patients rating high levels of well-being were pleased because, after surgery, they felt less embarrassed, more confident in social settings, more self-assured and more feminine and attractive.
- Sexual well-being: The subjects said they felt more sexually attractive when clothed and unclothed. They were more confident sexually and more satisfied with their intimate lives. Said one breast augmentation patient: “What I find now is that I am sensual, which I did not feel before.”
- Physical well-being
- Satisfaction with the process of care: Attention plastic surgeons and office staff: According to the study, breast surgery patients mainly look for the amount and quality of information they get before surgery; the actual care provided by the surgeon along with the office staff care. Responded one patient: “And once I came home, the home care…the nurses would come round and they were just excellent..”
admin @ May 28, 2009
