The Body-QoL(®): patient reported outcomes in body contouring surgery patients [corrected]

This study aimed to design a new patient-reported outcome (PRO) instrument to measure patient satisfaction after body-contouring procedures such as liposculpture, abdominoplasty, body-lift, thigh-lift, and arm-lift.

Phase 1a involved an extensive literature review, 16 in-depth patient interviews, and expert focus groups with 5 plastic surgeons to develop a conceptual framework for the outcomes deemed important for body image and preliminary PRO instruments. In phase 1b, the preliminary instrument was tested with a second independent sample of 29 patients with whom simple interviews were additionally performed. In the second sample, scale reliability was calculated.

In phase 1a, the domains identified for the conceptual framework included clothing and body image, sexual and affective life, self-image and self-esteem, social relationships, and physical symptoms. In phase 1b, the scale internal consistency was 91.5 %.

When psychometric evaluation is completed, the Body-Shape-Related Quality of Life instrument and its subscales will provide a reliable tool for plastic surgeons, researchers, and patients to use in measuring the impact and effectiveness of body-contouring procedures from the patient's perspective.

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