Role of Reassurance and Proper Mechanical Support Advice on Quality of Life and Pain Relief in Patients of the Mastalgia-A Prospective Follow-up Study at A Tertiary Care Center in a Developing Country

Abstract

Objective:To study the effect of reassurance and proper mechanical support on quality of life (QOL) and visual analogue score (VAS) pain assessment in patients with mastalgia at a range of follow-ups.Materials and Methods:A prospective follow-up study was conducted among women aged 15–45 years, complaining of breast pain without any abnormality detected clinically and radiologically. After consent to participate and enrollment, all the study participants were counseled and reassured about the non-neoplastic nature of the disease and about wearing proper mechanical support/Bra; this was repeated at each follow-up. VAS was used to assess the pain intensity perceived by the woman at each follow-up, post intervention. The Short Form-36 (SF–36) scale was used to evaluate health related QOL (HRQOL).Results:Among 80 patients, 31.2% were wearing a Bra of fabric other than cotton, 21.2% were wearing a loose fit mechanical support/Brassiere, while 10% were not wearing any mechanical support at baseline. The overall mean VAS score was significantly reduced with each follow-up, indicating decreased perception of breast pain over time. There was a significant difference between the mean SF-36 score between base line and after three months (p<0.0001). Mean scores in all domains of the SF-36 increased. The greatest reduction in mean VAS score was seen in 26–35 years age group and women with a body mass index <18.5 kg/m2.Conclusion:Reassurance and wearing proper mechanical support/Bra are effective for improving QOL and alleviating breast pain/mastalgia. These simple processes should be used for the management of mastalgia.

Keywords

• mastalgia
• breast pain
• quality of life
• reassurance
• mechanical support
• body mass index