Development of the BODY-Q Chest Module Evaluating Outcomes following Chest Contouring Surgery

What is it about?

Plastic surgery to improve chest appearance is increasingly performed in the USA. To evaluate clinically relevant outcomes following chest contouring surgery a highly specific patient-reported outcome (PRO) instrument is needed. The BODY-Q is a PRO instrument our team designed for weight loss and/or body contouring. Qualitative methods were used to develop and refine the content of the BODY-Q Chest Module, which was subsequently field-tested with 739 participants Canada, USA, Netherlands and Denmark between June 2016 and June 2017. The sample included 174 gynecomastia, 224 weight loss, and 341 gender confirming surgery participants. Rasch Measurement Theory analysis was used to refine the scale and showed that the two new scales measuring the appearance of the chest (10 items) and nipples (5 items) were reliable and valid and worked the same psychometrically across participants who varied by age, language and chest condition.

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