title: Patient attitudes to sternotomy and thoracotomy scars.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  There are no data comparing patient attitudes to sternotomy and thoracotomy scars following surgery for congenital heart disease (CHD).
  
  
  METHODS
  Two hundred and one patients with a scar from CHD surgery (105 sternotomy, 36 thoracotomy, and 60 both scars) had a structured interview to explore attitudes to their scar.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Comparable proportions of each group reported that they did not like or hated their scar (23/105 [22 %] sternotomy, 9/36 [25 %] thoracotomy, 17/60 [28 %] both scars). Significantly more patients stated that they where embarrassed by and/or their choice of clothing was affected by a thoracotomy scar (20/36, 56 %) than those with a sternotomy scar (36/105, 34 %), p = 0.04. This was also seen when comparing sternotomy alone with both scars (36/105 [34 %] vs. 34/60 [57 %], p = 0.008).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Adults who have undergone surgery for CHD are more likely to have a negative attitude to a thoracotomy than a sternotomy scar. Before a change in surgical approach is considered based on patient preferences, the acceptability and psychological impact of the different scars following surgery needs formal study.
authors.affiliation: Department of Paediatric Cardiology, Freeman Hospital, Newcastle upon Tyne, United Kingdom. davidxland@hotmail.com
authors.forename: D S
authors.initials: DS
authors.lastname: Crossland
authors.forename: S P
authors.initials: SP
authors.lastname: Jackson
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Lyall
authors.forename: J R L
authors.initials: JR
authors.lastname: Hamilton
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Hasan
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Burn
authors.forename: J J
authors.initials: JJ
authors.lastname: O'Sullivan
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001294:Attitude to Health; D002921:Cicatrix / Q000523:psychology*; D005260:Female; D006330:Heart Defects, Congenital / Q000601:surgery; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D013249:Sternum / Q000601:surgery*; D013908:Thoracotomy