Evidence map›Paper›PMID 40208323›Full record

ArticleAesthetic plastic surgery2025

Safety of Combined Versus Isolated Cosmetic Breast Surgery and Abdominoplasty: Insights from a Multi-institutional Database.

Samuel Knoedler, Michael Alfertshofer, Dany Y Matar, Giuseppe Sofo, Gabriel Hundeshagen, Oliver Didzun, Amir K Bigdeli, Sarah Friedrich, Thilo Schenck, Ulrich Kneser and 3 more

Abstract readMulticenter StudyComparative Study
PubMed Publisher
In one paragraph

Article in Aesthetic plastic surgery, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 4 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
4citing papers in PubMed, 1 pooled it
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

4 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.

  1. Pooled it
  2. Article
  3. Article
  4. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

13 authors.

Samuel KnoedlerDivision of Plastic Surgery, Department of Surgery, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, 75 Francis Street, Boston, MA, 02115, USA.
Michael AlfertshoferDepartment of Plastic Surgery and Hand Surgery, Technical University Munich, Munich, Germany.ORCID 0000-0002-4892-2376
Dany Y MatarDivision of Plastic Surgery, Department of Surgery, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, 75 Francis Street, Boston, MA, 02115, USA.
Giuseppe SofoInstituto Ivo Pitanguy, Hospital Santa Casa de Misericórdia Rio de Janeiro, Pontifícia Universidade Católica do Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
Gabriel HundeshagenDepartment of Hand-, Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, Microsurgery, Burn Trauma Center, BG Trauma Center Ludwigshafen, University of Heidelberg, Ludwigshafen, Germany.
Oliver DidzunDepartment of Hand-, Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, Microsurgery, Burn Trauma Center, BG Trauma Center Ludwigshafen, University of Heidelberg, Ludwigshafen, Germany.
Amir K BigdeliDepartment of Hand-, Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, Microsurgery, Burn Trauma Center, BG Trauma Center Ludwigshafen, University of Heidelberg, Ludwigshafen, Germany.
Sarah FriedrichDepartment of Mathematical Statistics and Artificial Intelligence in Medicine, University of Augsburg, Augsburg, Germany.
Thilo SchenckPrivate Practice, Munich, Germany.
Ulrich KneserDepartment of Hand-, Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, Microsurgery, Burn Trauma Center, BG Trauma Center Ludwigshafen, University of Heidelberg, Ludwigshafen, Germany.
Dennis P OrgillDivision of Plastic Surgery, Department of Surgery, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, 75 Francis Street, Boston, MA, 02115, USA.
Leonard Knoedler *Division of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA.
Adriana C Panayi *Division of Plastic Surgery, Department of Surgery, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, 75 Francis Street, Boston, MA, 02115, USA. a.panayi@cantab.net.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

introductionAbdominoplasty and breast surgery are popular cosmetic procedures, often performed as stand-alone or combined procedures. However, the safety of combining these surgeries remains poorly understood.

methodsWe analyzed data from the ACS-NSQIP database spanning 2008-2021, focusing on patients who underwent isolated cosmetic breast surgery, isolated cosmetic abdominoplasty, or the combination of both. We evaluated four primary outcomes: general complications (reoperation, readmission, mortality), surgical complications, medical complications, and overall complications (general + surgical + medical). Further analysis considered the specific type of cosmetic breast surgery.

resultsA total of 7865 female patients were identified, of whom 20.5% underwent isolated abdominoplasty, 65.3% cosmetic breast surgery, and 14.2% combined abdominoplasty with concurrent cosmetic breast surgery. Combined surgery was associated with a significantly higher risk of reoperations (OR 2.07; p = 0.04) compared to abdominoplasty alone. However, there was no significant difference in overall complications (OR 1.17; p = 0.40), surgical complications (OR 0.72; p = 0.26), or medical complications (OR 0.97; p = 0.91) between these two groups. Comparing combined to isolated cosmetic breast surgery, there was a higher risk of overall complications (OR 1.70; p = 0.04) and medical complications (OR 5.30; p < 0.0001) but no significant difference in general complications (OR 1.40; p = 0.33) or surgical complications (OR 0.85; p = 0.73).

conclusionCombining breast surgery with abdominoplasty increases the risk of reoperations but does not elevate the risk of surgical or medical complications. However, patients seeking combined surgeries are more likely to experience adverse events than those seeking isolated cosmetic breast surgery. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE III: This journal requires that authors assign a level of evidence to each article. For a full description of these Evidence-Based Medicine ratings, please refer to the Table of Contents or the online Instructions to Authors www.springer.com/00266 .

Indexed as

AbdominoplastyMammaplastyPostoperative ComplicationsAdultDatabases, FactualEstheticsFemaleHumansMiddle AgedReoperationRetrospective StudiesRisk AssessmentTreatment OutcomeAbdominoplastyBreast surgeryCombined procedureCosmetic surgeryIsolated procedure

Identifiers

PMID40208323

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.