Prevalence and Severity of Chronic Pain in Patients Receiving Mastectomy with Alloplastic Immediate Breast Reconstruction: A Survey Study.

Introduction: Breast cancer is the most frequently diagnosed cancer worldwide. For those undergoing mastectomy, the choice of alloplastic immediate breast reconstruction (IBR) is increasingly favored. Post-operative chronic pain is an important consideration in this decision, but there is a paucity of data for those undergoing alloplastic IBR. We sought to examine the prevalence, severity, and risk factors for the development of chronic pain in this cohort using validated patient-reported outcome measures. Methods: A cross-sectional survey study was conducted among patients receiving mastectomy with alloplastic IBR. Participants completed 3 surveys querying chronic pain, specifically the Breast Cancer Pain Questionnaire (BCPQ), Brief Pain Inventory (BPI), and BREAST-Q. Participant medical records were reviewed for demographic and surgical variables. Results: A total of 118 patients participated in the study-a response rate of 33.6%. Chronic pain prevalence was high (52.5%), and only 29.0% of these patients had consulted a physician regarding their pain. Among those reporting chronic pain (n = 62), the median severity of pain was 3.1 on an 11-point scale. Chronic pain was associated with radiation (p = .018), bilateral reconstruction (p = .05), worse emotional health (p = .0003), less self (p = .022), and sexual confidence (p = .044). Inter-tool reliability was high, with no significant difference in responses between the 3 surveys. Conclusion: In this cohort, chronic pain is supported as a significant concern among patients who have undergone mastectomy with alloplastic IBR. Given the burden of chronic pain, there is an opportunity to intervene with preventative measures and support for its management.

Introduction: Le cancer du sein est le cancer le plus souvent diagnostiqué dans le monde. L'option de reconstruction mammaire immédiate (RMI) alloplastique est de plus en plus souvent choisie par les patientes subissant une mastectomie. La douleur chronique postopératoire est un important facteur à prendre en compte dans cette décision, mais nous ne disposons que peu de données pour les patientes ayant une RMI alloplastique. Nous avons cherché à étudier la prévalence, la sévérité et les facteurs de risque de survenue d'une douleur chronique dans cette population de patients au moyen de mesures validées de déclaration des résultats. Méthodes: Une enquête transversale a été réalisée parmi les patientes ayant bénéficié d'une RMI alloplastique. Les participants ont répondu à trois enquêtes portant sur la douleur chronique (plus spécifiquement le questionnaire sur la douleur dans le cancer du sein [BCPQ], le Questionnaire court sur la douleur [BPI ou Brief Pain Inventory] et le BREAST-Q). Les dossiers médicaux des participantes ont été examinés à la recherche des variables démographiques et chirurgicales. Résultats: Un total de 118 patientes a participé à l'étude, soit un taux de réponse de 33.6%. La prévalence de la douleur chronique était élevée (52.5%) et seulement 29.0% de ces patientes avaient consulté un médecin à propos de cette douleur. Parmi les participantes signalant une douleur chronique (n = 62), la sévérité médiane de la douleur était de 3,1 sur une échelle de 11 points. La douleur chronique a été associée à la radiothérapie (p = .018), à une reconstruction bilatérale (p = .05), à une aggravation de la santé émotionnelle (p = .0003), à une moindre confiance en soi (p = .022) et sur le plan de la sexualité (p = .044), La fiabilité inter-outils a été élevée, sans différence significative entre réponses dans les trois enquêtes. Conclusion: Il est confirmé que, dans cette cohorte, la douleur chronique est une préoccupation importante chez les patientes ayant subi une mastectomie avec RMI alloplastique. Considérant le fardeau que représente la douleur chronique, il y a une opportunité d'intervention en utilisant des mesures préventives et en apportant un soutien pour sa gestion.

Soft Tissue Procedures in the Multiply Operated on Knee Replacement Patient.

In the multiply operated on knee replacement, no one soft tissue procedure is vastly superior to another. The most extensive literature available is in relation to muscle flaps, which will continue to be the workhorse technique for orthopedic and plastic reconstructive surgeons for the foreseeable future. Closed incision negative pressure wound therapy may prove to be a superior method in time but further large-scale studies are required to expand our understanding of this technique. The continued use of a combination of these techniques, tailored to the specific patient, is likely to be the best approach to the multiply operated on knee into the future.

Management of patients requiring reconstructive breast surgery during the COVID-19 pandemic: recommendations from the BC Regional Breast Reconstruction Network.

Summary: The COVID-19 pandemic has caused unprecedented challenges in health care, threatening access and delivery of medical services across all sectors. Patients with breast cancer desiring breast reconstruction require timely interdisciplinary care; resource limitations threaten access to this elective reconstructive element of cancer care. An expert panel was convened to identify challenges, recommend preliminary solutions, and identify important future directions in anticipation of prolonged restrictions. This paper presents consensus recommendations for care of breast cancer reconstruction patients during the pandemic based on expert opinion from the BC Breast Reconstruction Network.

Granzyme B inhibition reduces disease severity in autoimmune blistering diseases.

Pemphigoid diseases refer to a group of severe autoimmune skin blistering diseases characterized by subepidermal blistering and loss of dermal-epidermal adhesion induced by autoantibody and immune cell infiltrate at the dermal-epidermal junction and upper dermis. Here, we explore the role of the immune cell-secreted serine protease, granzyme B, in pemphigoid disease pathogenesis using three independent murine models. In all models, granzyme B knockout or topical pharmacological inhibition significantly reduces total blistering area compared to controls. In vivo and in vitro studies show that granzyme B contributes to blistering by degrading key anchoring proteins in the dermal-epidermal junction that are necessary for dermal-epidermal adhesion. Further, granzyme B mediates IL-8/macrophage inflammatory protein-2 secretion, lesional neutrophil infiltration, and lesional neutrophil elastase activity. Clinically, granzyme B is elevated and abundant in human pemphigoid disease blister fluids and lesional skin. Collectively, granzyme B is a potential therapeutic target in pemphigoid diseases.

Granzyme B is elevated in autoimmune blistering diseases and cleaves key anchoring proteins of the dermal-epidermal junction.

In healthy skin, epidermis and dermis are anchored together at the dermal-epidermal junction (DEJ), a specialized basement membrane pivotal for skin integrity and function. However, increased inflammation in the DEJ is associated with the disruption and separation of this junction and sub-epidermal blistering. Granzyme B (GzmB) is a serine protease secreted by immune cells. Dysregulated inflammation may lead to increased GzmB accumulation and proteolysis in the extracellular milieu. Although elevated GzmB is observed at the level of the DEJ in inflammatory and blistering skin conditions, the present study is the first to explore GzmB in the context of DEJ degradation in autoimmune sub-epidermal blistering. In the present study, GzmB induced separation of the DEJ in healthy human skin. Subsequently, α6/ß4 integrin, collagen VII, and collagen XVII were identified as extracellular substrates for GzmB through western blot, and specific cleavage sites were identified by mass spectrometry. In human bullous pemphigoid, dermatitis herpetiformis, and epidermolysis bullosa acquisita, GzmB was elevated at the DEJ when compared to healthy samples, while α6/ß4 integrin, collagen VII, and collagen XVII were reduced or absent in the area of blistering. In summary, our results suggest that regardless of the initial causation of sub-epidermal blistering, GzmB activity is a common final pathway that could be amenable to a single targeted treatment approach.

Evidence-Based Medicine: Alloplastic Breast Reconstruction.

LEARNING OBJECTIVES: After studying this article, the participant should be able to: 1. Understand the different advances that have resulted in improved outcomes in implant-based reconstruction. 2. Gain knowledge about specific techniques that have evolved rapidly in recent years and how to implement these. 3. Gain an understanding of controversies associated with alloplastic reconstruction. 4. Recognize undesirable outcomes in implant-based breast reconstruction and understand strategies for correction. SUMMARY: There have been multiple advances in implant-based breast reconstruction. Many of these have resulted in improvements in patient outcomes and care. Understanding new techniques and technologies ensures competence in providing care for the alloplastic breast reconstruction patient. This article was prepared to accompany practice-based assessment with ongoing surgical education for the Maintenance of Certification for the American Board of Plastic Surgery. It is structured to outline the care of the patient with the postmastectomy breast deformity.

Evidence-Based Medicine: Autologous Breast Reconstruction.

LEARNING OBJECTIVES: After studying this article, the participant should be able to: 1. Gain an understanding of the different methods of autologous reconstruction available. 2. Understand the timing of autologous breast reconstruction and the impact of adjuvant and neoadjuvant treatments. 3 Understand the factors necessary for a comprehensive patient assessment. 4. Gain knowledge of patient factors that will affect autologous reconstruction and potential contraindications. 5. Summarize the patient-reported and clinical outcomes of autologous breast reconstruction. SUMMARY: This article was prepared to accompany practice-based assessment with ongoing surgical education for the Maintenance of Certification for the American Board of Plastic Surgery. It is structured to outline the care of the patient with the postmastectomy breast deformity.

Quality of Life and Patient-Reported Outcomes in Breast Cancer Survivors: A Multicenter Comparison of Four Abdominally Based Autologous Reconstruction Methods.

BACKGROUND: Approximately 20 percent of women select autologous tissue for postmastectomy breast reconstruction, and most commonly choose the abdomen as the donor site. An increasing proportion of women are seeking muscle-sparing procedures, but the benefit remains controversial. It is therefore important to determine whether better outcomes are associated with these techniques, thereby justifying longer operative times and increased costs. METHODS: Patients from five North American centers were eligible if they underwent reconstruction by means of the deep inferior epigastric artery perforator (DIEP) flap, muscle-sparing free transverse abdominis myocutaneous (TRAM) flap, free TRAM flap, or the pedicled TRAM flap. Patients were sent the BREAST-Q. Demographics and complications were collected. RESULTS: The authors analyzed 1790 charts representing 670 DIEP, 293 muscle-sparing free TRAM, 683 pedicled TRAM, and 144 free TRAM patients with an average follow-up of 5.5 years. Flap loss did not differ by flap type. Partial flap loss was higher in pedicled TRAM compared with DIEP (p = 0.002). Fat necrosis was higher in pedicled TRAM compared with DIEP and muscle-sparing free TRAM (p < 0.001). Hernia/bulge was highest in pedicled TRAM (p < 0.001). Physical well-being (abdomen) scores were higher in DIEP compared with pedicled TRAM controlling for confounders. CONCLUSIONS: Complications and patient-reported outcomes differ when comparing abdominally based breast reconstruction techniques. The results of this study show that the DIEP flap was associated with the highest abdominal well-being and the lowest abdominal morbidity compared with the pedicled TRAM flap, but did not differ from muscle-sparing free TRAM and free TRAM flaps. CLINICAL QUESTION/LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: Therapeutic, III.

Comparison of Outcomes following Autologous Breast Reconstruction Using the DIEP and Pedicled TRAM Flaps: A 12-Year Clinical Retrospective Study and Literature Review.

BACKGROUND: There are few studies that compare the deep inferior epigastric artery perforator (DIEP) flap to the pedicled transverse rectus abdominis myocutaneous (pTRAM) flap for use in reconstructive breast surgery. The authors examined four factors that aid in decision-making: donor-site morbidity, need for surgery related to abdominal morbidity, operative time, and complications. METHODS: This is a retrospective review of patients undergoing breast reconstruction using the DIEP or pTRAM flap at the University of British Columbia between 2002 and 2013. The authors compared operative time and abdomen- and flap-related complications in both groups. RESULTS: Reconstruction was performed in 507 patients; 25.6 percent received DIEP flaps (n = 183 breasts) and 74.4 percent underwent pTRAM flap surgery (n = 444 breasts). Pedicled TRAM flap patients were more likely to require abdominal closure with mesh (44.2 percent versus 8.1 percent; p < 0.001); 21.2 percent of them had a postoperative bulge and/or hernia versus 3.1 percent of DIEP flap patients; and 12.7 percent of pTRAM flap patients required surgery for hernia/bulge. Controlling for confounders, there were five times the odds of a hernia/bulge in the pTRAM flap group. DIEP flap surgery was 234 minutes longer than pTRAM flap surgery. CONCLUSIONS: The benefits of the pTRAM flap may be offset by the need to correct abdominal wall complications. DIEP flap reconstruction had lower donor complications but increased operative time. A cost analysis is needed to determine the most economical procedure. CLINCIAL QUESTION/LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: Therapeutic, III.

Satisfaction following Unilateral Breast Reconstruction: A Comparison of Pedicled TRAM and Free Abdominal Flaps.

BACKGROUND: The purpose of this study was to compare patient satisfaction following unilateral pedicled transverse rectus abdominis myocutaneous (TRAM) and free abdominal flap reconstruction. METHODS: Patients who underwent unilateral breast reconstruction using pedicled TRAM or free abdominal flaps (muscle-sparing TRAM or deep inferior epigastric perforator flap) and completed the BREAST-Q were identified from 2 prospectively maintained databases. BREAST-Q scores were assessed and compared for Satisfaction with Breasts, Outcome, and Physical Well-being Chest/Abdomen. RESULTS: Of the 138 patients who completed the BREAST-Q, 84 underwent pedicled TRAM flap reconstruction and 54 underwent free abdominal flap reconstruction. Overall, pedicled TRAM flap patients scored higher than free abdominal flap patients on all 4 BREAST-Q scales. This difference reached statistical significance in Satisfaction with Breasts (+7.74; P = 0.02). Similar results were found among patients who completed the BREAST-Q at <3 years postoperation. However, among patients at ≥3 years postoperation, there were no statistically significant differences between the 2 groups, with the pedicled flap cohort scoring higher in Satisfaction with Breasts and Physical Well-being Chest and the free abdominal flap cohort scoring higher in Satisfaction with Outcome and Physical Well-being Abdomen scores. CONCLUSIONS: Patients who underwent unilateral pedicled TRAM flap reconstruction experienced greater initial breast satisfaction than patients who underwent unilateral free abdominal flap reconstruction, but satisfaction equalized between the two over time, suggesting that long-term satisfaction may be equivalent between the 2 methods of reconstruction.