title: Weight versus volume in breast surgery: an observational study.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  The study hypothesis is to assess correlation of breast specimen weight versus volume.
  
  
  METHODS
  Consecutive patients undergoing breast surgery at a single tertiary referral centre during a 6-month period were included. Specimen weight was measured in grams. Direct volume measurements were performed using water displacement. Data including side of the breast, age and menstrual status of the patient were noted.
  
  
  METHODS
  Knowledge of breast volume provides an objective guide in facilitating the achievements of balance in reconstructive operations. Surgeons use intraoperative weight measurements from individual breasts to calculate the breast volume assuming that weight is equal to the volume of the specimen. However, it is unclear whether weight accurately reveals the true volume of resection.
  
  
  METHODS
  Forty-one patients were included in the study with 28 having bilateral surgeries, 13 having unilateral procedures giving a total of 69 breast specimens.
  
  
  METHODS
  Breast specimen weight correlation to breast specimen volume.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The mean age of the group was 42.4 years. Fifty-two specimens were from premenopausal patients and 17 were of postmenopausal. Thirty-five were left-sided. Twenty-six patients had bilateral breast reduction, two had bilateral mastectomy, nine had a unilateral mastectomy and four patients had a unilateral breast reduction. The difference between weight and volume of these breasts was 36.4 units (6.6% difference). The difference in measurement of weight and volume in premenopausal was 37.6 units compared to 32.6 units in postmenopausal women. The density was 1.07 and 1.06, respectively. This was statistically not significant.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  No significant difference between volume and weight was seen in this series. Furthermore, we are unable to support the notion that premenopausal patients have a significant difference in the proportion of fatty and glandular tissue as there was little difference between the weight and the volume. An easy, clinically proper formula for the quantification of actual breast volume has yet to be derived.
authors.affiliation: Department of Surgery, Aintree University Hospitals, NHS Foundation Trust ,  Liverpool L9 7AL ,  UK.
authors.forename: Chetan
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Parmar
authors.forename: Malcolm
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: West
authors.forename: Samir
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Pathak
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Nelson
authors.forename: Lee
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Martin