A study of volumes of the right and left breasts of 248 subjects was undertaken using biostereometric analysis. This measurement technique uses close-range stereophotogrammetry to characterize the shape of the breast and is noncontact, noninvasive, accurate, and rapid with respect to the subject involvement time. Volumes and volumetric differences between breast pairs were compared, using chi-square tests, with handedness, perception of breast size by each subject, age, and menstrual status. No significant relationship was found between the handedness of the subject and the larger breast volume. Several groups of subjects based on age and menstrual status were accurate in their perception of breast size difference. Analysis did not confirm the generally accepted clinical impression of left breast volume dominance. Although a size difference in breast pairs was documented, neither breast predominated.
(C)1987American Society of Plastic Surgeons