[Chronic post-mastectomy pain].

SUMMARY Background. Surgery results in chronic pain in 7–80 percent of cases. One of the most frequently studied of these is chronic post-mastectomy pain. The prevalence was 40–50 percent in studies performed abroad. As this problem has not yet been studied in the Czech Republic, a retrospective prevalence study was performed to assess the extent of the problem and risk factors for development of chronic post mastectomy pain. Methods and Results. An anonymous questionnaire was developed and distributed in various oncology departments and patients’ organizations after ethical committee approval. The response rate was 100 percent; 330 questionnaires were processed. Chronic post-mastectomy pain (lasting longer than 3 months after surgery) was described by 69 (20.9 percent) women. The pain was permanent in 17 cases and transient in 46 cases, not specified in 6 cases. The pain intensity on the Lickert verbal scale was predominantly mild or moderate. Risk factors for development of chronic post-mastectomy pain were younger age (under 55–60 years, p=0.0098), less extensive surgery (tumourectomy vs. mastectomy, p=0.0017), intensive postoperative pain (p=0.0002) and radiotherapy (p=0.0174). A trend of chronic pain occurrence during chemotherapy (p=0.0778) was observed. Conclusions. The prevalence of chronic post-mastectomy pain was lower in our study comparing to studies in other countries. The reason remains obscure despite detailed analysis.