Vacuum-Assisted Evacuation (VAE) Of Symptomatic and/or Voluminous Breast Haematomas Following Surgeries And Percutaneous Procedures: a Retrospective Analysis

The patient was placed supine and meticulous aseptic measures were applied. Prior procedure local anesthesia (lidocaine 1%) was administered following disinfection. A 5 mm skin incision is performed to guarantee appropriate access for the needle insertion in the hematomas. The evacuation was achieved using a Mammotome® vacuum-assisted system (Devicor Medical Products, Inc., Cincinnati, OH, USA), with an 8-G needle, under the guidance of the same high-resolution US equipment (MyLabTM 9 XP; Esaote SpA, Genoa) for preoperative assessment. Empty-needle function and the tissue-biopsy option is preferred to fragment the fibrotic tissue until the hematoma empties and its walls collapsed. Once VAEv is performed, the postoperative US is carried out and VAEv is repeated until more than 90% evacuations of hematoma volume if no complication occurs.