A preliminary survey of female breast characteristics based on three-dimensional images of breast cone-beam computed tomography / 中国辐射卫生

Objective To establish a method to characterize the size and density of the female breast based on three-dimensional images of breast cone-beam computed tomography (CBCT), and describe the breast characteristics of women in a region of China, and to explore its value in dosimetric assessment for breast CBCT examinees. Methods We retrospectively surveyed the breast CBCT images of 203 women in a grade A tertiary hospital in a southwestern city of China from January 2021 to March 2023. The effective diameter of the breast at the chest-wall (Deff), chest wall-to-nipple length (CNL), the effective diameter of the breast at half of CNL (Dh/2), breast volume (BV), glandular volume (GV), and volumetric breast density (VBD) were measured using the specific tools of the Koning Imaging Viewer system. The differences between groups were assessed using the Kruskal-Wallis H test. The correlation between variables was assessed using the Spearman’s correlation coefficient. Results The median values of Deff, Dh/2, CNL, BV, GV, and VBD of the surveyed population were 11.9 cm, 8.3 cm, 6.5 cm, 327.7 cm3, 47.0 cm3, and 15.4%, respectively. GV and VBD had significant negative correlations with age. Deff, Dh/2, CNL, and BV were significantly negatively correlated with VBD. Conclusion We established a quantitative method to analyze female breast characteristics based on three-dimensional breast CBCT images, and preliminarily characterized the female breast in a region of China, which can provide methodological support for the investigation of female breast characteristics in various regions of China in the future.

Predicting the Degree of Breast Size in Augmentation with Cohesive Gel Implant

PURPOSE: Predicting the change in breast size for a specific patient's need is a challenging problem in breast augmentation. We intended to investigate the post-augmentation degree of breast size according to the size of cohesive silicone gel implant. METHODS: To predict post-augmentation breast size, we measured 100 patients' pre-and postoperative 3 month's bust circumference. All patients were performed by total subfascial breast augmentation with moderate profile cohesive silicone gel implant through areolar omega (transareolar-perinipple) incision. RESULTS: According to this study, each additional one pair of 100mL in implant size yielded an approximate 1.5cm increase in bust circumference(p=0.006). CONCLUSION: From this result, we conclude that each additional one pair of 100mL in implant volume yielded about 1.5cm increase in bust circumference. Although this result may not be applied to every patient, we believe that it yields a practical chart that can help to predict the amount of increase in breast size with the use of cohesive silicone gel implant of a specific size preoperatively.

The correlation of lactating women's breast size and breast milk production.

Objective: To evaluate the correlation between lactating womenûs breast size and breast milk production. Methods: 53 normal primiparous women with neither breastfeeding problems nor having drugs that affected milk production who delivered vaginally at Siriraj Hospital, Bangkok, Thailand were enrolled. On the 3rd day after delivery, breast size and breast milk volume were recorded by the same investigator at 3 hr after the last breastfeeding. Results: The means of breast size and breast milk volume in this study were 13.5 ± 3.7 cm and 47.8 ± 18.3 ml, respectively. Regarding to the Pearson correlation test, breast milk volume had no significant correlation with breast size (rs= -0.112, p > 0.05), but showed a negative correlation with the maternal age (rs= -0.27, p < 0.05). Conclusion: There is no significant correlation between breast milk volume and breast size. The small breast size woman should be counseled and reassured to get more confidence in breast feeding.