Highlights
- •Quantification of breast skin strain to inform incision locations during surgery
- •Up to 75% skin strain in the longitudinal direction in upper region of breast
- •Smaller-breasted participants experienced greater strain on lateral breast regions
- •Larger-breasted participants experienced greater strain on medial breast regions
Abstract
Background
Quantification of the magnitude of skin strain in different regions of the breast
may help to estimate possible gravity-induced damage whilst also being able to inform
the selection of incision locations during breast surgery. The aim of this study was
to quantify static skin strain over the breast surface and to estimate the risk of
skin damage caused by gravitational loading.
Methods
Fourteen participants had 21 markers applied to their torso and left breast. The non-gravity
breast position was estimated as the mid-point of the breast positions in water and
soybean oil (higher and lower density than breast respectively). The static gravity-loaded
breast position was also measured. Skin strain was calculated as the percentage extension
between adjacent breast markers in the gravity and non-gravity loaded conditions.
Findings
Gravity induced breast deformation caused peak strains ranging from 14 to 75% across
participants, with potentially damaging skin strain (>60%) in one participant and skin strains above 30% (skin resistance zone) in a further
four participants. These peak strain values all occurred in the longitudinal direction
in the upper region of the breast skin. In the latitudinal direction, smaller-breasted
participants experienced greater strain on the outer (lateral) breast regions and
less strain on the inner (medial) breast regions, a trend which was reversed in the
larger breasted participants (above size 34D).
Interpretation
To reduce tension on surgical incisions it is suggested that preference should be
given to medial latitudinal locations for smaller breasted women and lateral latitudinal
locations for larger breasted women.
Keywords
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Article info
Publication history
Published online: October 03, 2017
Accepted:
October 2,
2017
Received:
September 21,
2016
Identification
Copyright
© 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
