Researchers have identified a possible link between living in an area of lower food access and postoperative outcomes and complications after breast reconstruction, according to study results published in Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery.
"Our findings suggest that access to healthy foods and nutritional status may influence the risk of complications after breast reconstruction surgery," stated corresponding study author Kenneth Fan, MD, of the Department of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, Medstar Georgetown University Hospital, Washington, DC. "Food insecurity might be an important social determinant of health for breast reconstruction patients."
Background and Study Methods
Prior studies have suggested a link between poor nutrition and recovery after breast construction.
Food deserts are considered areas where there are higher rates of food insecurity with more unhealthy food and fewer healthy options.
Researchers evaluated the comorbidity burden in patients who live in a food desert to determine the impact that living in a food desert has on outcomes after mastectomy. They conducted a retrospective review of 1,553 patients who underwent mastectomy between January 2014 and November 2018.
Low food access was defined as an area that was at least 1 mile (urban) or at least 10 miles (rural) from a nearby supermarket.
Primary outcomes of the study were minor and major complications after surgery.
Key Findings
A total of 675 patients (43.5%) lived in a low food access area. The mean Charlson Comorbidity Index score was 2.6 for patients who lived in a low food access area and 2.3 for those who did not (P < .001).
This group also a higher rate of minor complications following mastectomy than those not living in low food access areas (28.1% vs 21.3%; P = .002) as well as a higher incidence of reoperation (12.3% vs 7.3%; P = .001).
Subanalysis showed that patients with low income had a higher incidence of reoperation than those with higher incomes (17.7% vs 10.6%; P = .018).
The researchers noted that their study shows a potential link between food access, increased comorbidities, and postoperative complications, though further study is needed.
"These findings emphasize the critical role of nutrition in recovery and suggest that geographic and socioeconomic disparities contribute to health outcomes," the study authors concluded.
DISCLOSURE: For full disclosures of the study authors, visit journals.lww.com.
