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Review
. 2023 Jul;18(3):319-331.
doi: 10.18502/ijps.v18i3.13008.

Cosmetic Breast Implants and the Risk of Suicide: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Zahra Mousavi  1 , Nasrin Abolhasanpour  2 , Amirreza Naseri  3 , Fatemeh Maghsoudi  1 , Azizeh Farshbaf-Khalili  4 , Kavous Shahsavarinia  5 , Ali Mousavi  6 , Rasa Beheshti  3 , Ali Mostafaei  1 , Hanieh Salehi-Pourmehr  1
Affiliations
Review

Cosmetic Breast Implants and the Risk of Suicide: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Zahra Mousavi et al. Iran J Psychiatry. 2023 Jul.

Abstract

Objective: Having cosmetic breast implants increases a woman's chance of suicide, which is now a global challenge. This systematic review evaluated the possible risk of suicide among women who undergo cosmetic breast implants. Method : This meta-analysis was done based on Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Review and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA). In the current systematic review and meta-analysis, we systematically searched for all articles written in both English or Persian that estimated the prevalence of suicidal ideation in women who had cosmetic breast implants. We systematically searched different databases, including MEDLINE (PubMed), Web of Science, Embase, Cochrane, Library ProQuest, Scopus, and Google Scholar, from inception to March 2021. There was also a search for references. Suicidal ideation, a suicide plan, or suicide attempts were the outcomes. In order to determine the total pooled prevalence of suicidal ideation, we utilized a random-effects model. To examine the risks of bias in each study, we applied the Joanna Briggs Institute Critical Appraisal method. Results: We identified 218 citations in our initial search. After omitting duplicated citations and excluding irrelevant studies according to the title and abstract selection, 42 studies were chosen for the full text analysis. Finally, 11 research, examining a total of 324,332 women were incorporated into the systematic review and critical appraisal assessment. Eight of these studies were found to be eligible for meta-analysis. The frequency of suicide in women with cosmetic breast implant was 0.2% (95% CI: 0.1% to 0.4%; P < 0.001) (Q-value: 168.143, I2:95.83). Most of the included studies had moderate quality. Conclusion: There might be a correlation between cosmetic breast implants and suicide risk, which could be stronger in the presence of a history of mental illnesses. The evidence about the possible effects of breast implants on the risk of suicide is still inconclusive, and there is a need for future well-designed studies on this topic.

Keywords: Breast Implants; Cosmetic Surgery; Suicide; Systematic Review.

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Conflict of interest statement

All authors strongly certify that there are no conflicts of interests with any existing financial organization regarding all the material debated in this manuscript.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Flowchart of the Search Phases to Select Studies for Systematic Review Based on the PRISMA Statement
Figure 2
Figure 2
Forrest Plot of the Suicide Prevalence in Cosmetic Breast Implant Patients Reported in Included Studies Based on Fixed and Random Effects Model
Figure 3
Figure 3
Funnel Chart of the Suicide Prevalence Rate in the Selected Studies
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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