PATIENTS HEALTH-RELATED QUALITY-OF-LIFE BEFORE AND AFTER AESTHETIC SURGERY

Objectives-To assess the health related quality of life of patients be fore and after aesthetic surgery. Design-A survey by questionnaire of patients before receiving surgery and 6 months after surgery. Sample-6 56 patients anticipating surgery were sent a preoperative questionnair e, to which 443 replied. Subsequently 259 of these received a postoper ative questionnaire, of which 198 were returned. Outcome measures-Heal th status was assessed using three standardised health status instrume nts (The Short Form 36 Health Survey Questionnaire (SF-36), the Genera l Health Questionnaire (GHQ-28) and the Rosenberg Self Esteem Scale. C omparisons were made between the health status of the plastic surgery patients and that of a random sample of the general population. Result s-Patients receiving breast reduction surgery experienced significant improvements on all three health status measures. Patients in all surg ical groups experienced significant improvements in self-esteem. Concl usions-Patients receiving aesthetic surgery experience a wide range of physical, psychological and social problems. Surgery was shown be eff ective at addressing these problems. Health status assessment provides a valid and independent method for measuring the effects of such heal th care interventions.