Women Underwent TRAM Surgery: Its Influence on Abdominal Muscle Function and the Effects of Therapeutic Exercises

The unilateral transverse rectus abdominis musculocutaneous (TRAM) flap is a major operation widely used for breast reconstruction. It is hypothesized that this surgery has the potential risk of weakening the abdominal wall because it disrupts the integrity of the rectus abdominis muscle (RA), therefore, alters the insertion of the oblique muscles and the biomechanical relationship between the RA muscle and adjacent structures. The purposes of this study were to examine the effects of the TRAM flap surgery on muscle size of abdominal muscles, strength and endurance of trunk muscles, strength and endurance of core stability, as well as the effects of therapeutic exercises on it in post-mastectomy women underwent TRAM surgery.