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The impact of breast reduction surgery on the low back compressive forces and function in individuals with macromastia

Macromastia can be a morbid condition causing shoulder pain, back pain, intertrigo, and bra strap grooving. Subjective symptoms are effectively relieved by reduction mammaplasty. However, objective validations of efficacy for breast reduction are scarce and primarily rely on standardized patient reported data. Therefore, this pilot study was conducted to determine the extent to which reduction mammaplasty surgery produces a change in biomechanical stress of the spine and level of disability in women with macromastia. Eleven women were evaluated prior to surgery and 3 months post surgery. Evaluation measured maximal compressive forces at the low back (LB) during a lifting task and the subjective level of disability using the Functional Rating Index (FRI). The results demonstrated that the average maximum LB compressive forces decreased 35% for the lifting task. Furthermore, the FRI scores improved 76% following surgery. Greatest improvement was reported for the frequency of pain. The results from this study combined with previous research demonstrate that women who undergo medically necessary reduction mammaplasty surgery may be at a decreased risk for disc degeneration and LB disorders. These results warrant additional research to prospectively investigate these individuals. This research was supported by a grant from the Center for Contemporary Rehabilitation Research, University of Utah.