Objective Effects of Breast Reduction Surgery on Physical Fitness.

BACKGROUND: Reduction mammaplasty is known for excellent outcomes and patient satisfaction. Although patients report improvements in pain, weight loss, and exercise levels, objective data on physical fitness benefits are limited.

METHODS: Using the Stanford Military Data Repository, we identified 89 US Army active duty women with at least 1 pre- and postoperative Army Physical Fitness Test (APFT) who underwent reduction mammaplasty during 2011 to 2014. We used paired t tests to compare pre- and postoperative APFT score means and raw values for push-ups, sit-ups, and the 2-mile run.

RESULTS: There were 56 subjects (62.9%) who improved in total APFT scores. Total score means increased from 235.9 preoperatively to 243.4 postoperatively (P = 0.0065). Of 28 subjects with at least 2 APFT scores before and after surgery, 20 (71.4%) improved in total scores. The subgroup's mean total score increased from 237.8 to 251.3 (P = 0.0009). Comparing individual pre- and postprocedure APFTs, all subjects demonstrated a mean 3.9% (SD, 0.1) improvement in total scores, and the subpopulation of 28 improved by 6.3% (SD, 0.1). In all events, mean performance values trended toward better postoperative scores. Differences were statistically significant for the total population for the number of sit-ups (P = 0.035), and, for the subgroup of 28, differences were statistically significant for the total score (P = 0.0009), sit-ups (P = 0.0002), and push-ups (P = 0.0134).

CONCLUSIONS: Reduction mammaplasty was associated with postoperative physical fitness improvements among US Army active duty women. Soldier data are useful for objectively assessing physical fitness effects of breast reduction surgery.