Breast sensitivity after vertical mammaplasty

Breast sensation after reduction mammaplasty is a major concern for surgeons and patients. The sensitivity of 80 breasts that were reduced using Lejour's technique (a superior dermoglandular pedicle with resection at the lower quadrants) was assessed in a prospective study. Ten points were selected on each breast for this study, including the nipple, four points on the areola, and five points on the breast skin. The measurements were performed preoperatively and at 3, 6, and 12 months postoperatively. Pressure thresholds were measured with 20 Semmes-Weinstein monofilaments, temperature sensitivity with hot and cold metal probes, vibratory thresholds with the Biothesiometer, and static and moving two-point discrimination tests with a Disk-Criminator. To assess the influence of breast ptosis and hypertrophy on sensitivity, the population was divided into two groups. In group I (19 patients), the sternal notch-to-nipple distance was less than 29 cm, and less than 500 g of tissue per breast was removed. In group II (21 patients), the sternal notch-to-nipple distance was more than 29 cm, and more than 500 g of tissue was resected. The sensitivity on the nipple and areola was significantly decreased at 3 and 6 months postoperatively for all modalities. At 1 year, sensitivity recovered, and no breast or nipple-areola complex was insensitive. Pressure sensitivity was not significantly different from the preoperative measurement in any area of the breast or in either group of patients, except for superior breast skin, for which sensitivity was improved in group II (p = 0.0004). Temperature sensitivity in group I was not different pre-operatively and postoperatively, but in group II, a significant decrease was observed in sensitivity for the nipple and areola (p = 0.01 and 0.004, respectively). Vibratory sensitivity was significantly decreased on the nipple, the areola, and the inferior breast skin (p = 0.01, 0.01, and 0.001, respectively) in group II but not in group I. In conclusion, ptotic or moderately hypertrophied breasts that were reduced using Lejour's technique recovered their preoperative level of sensitivity after an initial postoperative decline. However, in large breasts, although pressure sensitivity recovered after 1 year, temperature and vibration sensitivity remained diminished on the nipple-areola complex.SCOPUS: ar.jinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishe

A prospective quantitative comparison of breast sensation after superior and inferior pedicle mammaplasty.

Reduction mammaplasty techniques using the inferior pedicle have been recommended to preserve the nipple and areolar sensation after surgery. The vertical scar mammaplasty with a superior pedicle has often been criticised because of the potential for damage to the sensory supply of the nipple-areola complex. The aim of this study was to assess the breast sensation in two prospective series of patients operated upon using superior pedicle and inferior pedicle mammaplasties. Between November 1996 and February 1997, 20 consecutive patients (39 breasts) underwent breast reduction using the inferior pedicle technique with inverted T scar (Robbin's technique). This series of patients was matched with another series of 18 patients (36 breasts) who had breast reduction using a vertical scar mammaplasty with superior pedicle (Lejour's technique) in another centre. Cutaneous pressure thresholds were recorded using Semmes-Weinstein monofilaments. The values were obtained on the quadrants of the skin of the breast, the areola and the nipple. The sensitivity test was performed preoperatively, then at 3 and 6 months postoperatively. Patients' characteristics (age, weight, breast ptosis, breast mass resected and risk factors) were statistically similar between the two groups. The preoperative values of pressure sensation on the different areas tested were statistically similar between the two groups. The sensitivity decreased on almost all the tested areas of the breast at 3 months postoperatively. No patient had an insensitive area on the breast at 6 months after surgery. Some areas of the breast showed a significant difference in pressure sensitivity after one technique compared to the other: better sensation on the skin of the superior and lateral quadrants after the superior pedicle technique at 3 months (P <0.001), poorer areolar sensation on the inferior quadrant after the superior pedicle technique at 3 and 6 months (P <0.05) and on the superior quadrant after the inferior pedicle technique at 3 months only (P <0.05). However, the mean value of the areolar quadrants was statistically similar after both techniques. The nipple sensation was significantly decreased in both groups at 3 months but remained comparable between the two groups. Breast innervation was damaged by breast reduction using both the inferior and the superior pedicle techniques. The breast skin had better sensation after the superior pedicle technique while the areola had slightly better sensation after the inferior pedicle technique. At 6 months, the mean value of nipple-areola complex pressure sensation was comparable in the two series of patients. © 2001 The British Association of Plastic Surgeons.SCOPUS: ar.jinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishe

Breast sensation after superior pedicle versus inferior pedicle mammaplasty: anatomical and histological evaluation.

Despite contradictory information about the course and distribution of the nerves supplying the breast, surgical techniques using an inferior pedicle have been recommended over those using a superior pedicle for preserving the nipple-areolar sensation after surgery. This anatomical study was designed to quantify the nerve branches preserved in inferior and superior pedicles after reduction mammaplasty performed on cadavers. Reduction mammaplasty was done on four fresh cadavers (within 48 h of death) using a superior pedicle on the right and an inferior pedicle on the left in a standard way. The pedicle was cut at its base and then fixed in formalin. The base was divided in biopsy specimens and embedded in paraffin. The nerves were quantified and located in each pedicle with haematoxylin-eosin stain and light-microscopic evaluation. Histological evaluation of the pedicles showed the presence of a variable number of nerves (between one and seven) within two superior pedicles and three inferior pedicles. The nerves were located in fibrous tissue and accompanied by vessels in most cases. The nerves were always found superficially and were most likely to be located in the central part of the pedicle. Our results showed that including the nerves within the pedicle is technically uncertain regardless of the mammaplasty technique used. The final recovery of sensation in the breast after mammaplasty seems to result from the regeneration of severed cutaneous nerve branches or the remaining cutaneous innervation rather than the preserved adjacent cutaneous branches. © 2001 The British Association of Plastic Surgeons.SCOPUS: ar.jinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishe