Seroma formation in modified radical mastectomy: Why,whom and when?

Objectives: the objective was to determine the frequency of seroma formation after modified radical mastectomy and the possible causes. material and methods: this descriptive,observational study was done in the surgical b unit,khyber teaching hospital,peshawar,pakistan over a 1 year period (1st november 2005 to 31st oct 2006). patients undergoing mastectomy with axillary dissection were selected according to the inclusion/exclusion criteria by convenience method. all the patients were interviewed using a proforma. the data was analyzed using descriptive statistics. results: forty two patients,1 male and 41 female underwent mastectomy and axillary dissection of whom 13 (31%) developed a seroma. advanced age was significantly associated with seroma formation. out of 6 (14.3%) hypertensive patients 3(50%) developed a seroma,while amongst the 30 (71.4%) over weight patients,10(33.3%) developed seroma. there were 9(21.4%) anemic patients of whom 4(44.4%) developed a seroma. aspiration of seroma was done in 5(38.5%) patients. recovery was uneventful in all patients. conclusions: certain factors might be associated with an increased risk of seroma formation.