Weight Gain Common in Young Women After Breast Reduction Surgery

THURSDAY, Feb. 6, 2025 (HealthDay News) — Many young women gain weight in the years after breast reduction surgery, according to a study published online in the February issue of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery.

William N. Doyle Jr., from the University of South Florida Morsani College of Medicine in Tampa, and colleagues examined change in weight and body mass index (BMI) in adolescent women (aged younger than 21 years) following reduction mammaplasty. The analysis included 56 patients with weight measurements during a median 46.0 months of follow-up.

The researchers found that only 22 patients (39.3 percent) experienced a decrease in BMI at final follow-up compared with baseline. At two-, three-, and five-year visits and at final postoperative follow-up visits, patients classified as having a healthy weight preoperatively (BMI, 18.5 to 24.9 kg/m²) experienced a significant increase in BMI versus baseline. In contrast, patients classified as having overweight (BMI, 25.0 to 29.99 kg/m²) or obesity (≥30 kg/m²) did not experience significant BMI change at final postoperative follow-up.

“BMI and weight trended upward postoperatively regardless of BMI classification,” the authors write. “Reduction mammaplasty alone is not sufficient to stimulate weight loss. Healthy lifestyle changes should be encouraged to help prevent weight gain in adolescent women following reduction mammaplasty.”

One author disclosed receiving royalties for textbook authorship from Thieme Publishing.

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