Unveiling the silent emotions: exploring the impact of alexithymia on patient satisfaction after maxillofacial cosmetic surgery.

PURPOSE

Cosmetic surgery rates have shown a marked increase globally over the past few decades. Patient satisfaction is closely link to individuals' ability to communicate expectations about surgical outcomes. However, people with alexithymia (a condition marked by difficulty in recognizing and expressing emotions) often struggle to articulate their desires or specific concerns about their appearance. This study aimed to evaluate the impact of alexithymia on patient satisfaction following cosmetic surgery, addressing a gap in the existing literature.

METHODS

This is a cross-sectional observational study incorporated multivariate analysis. The sample was selected by using convenience sampling, based on predefined inclusion and exclusion criteria. Statistical analyses included p-values, independent t-tests, Pearson's correlation coefficients, and multivariate linear regression.

RESULTS

Among 304 participants, 29.9% exhibited high levels of alexithymia, 17.4% moderate, and 52.6% low. Regression analysis indicated that higher alexithymia scores were significantly associated with lower patient satisfaction (β = -0.20, 95% CI: -0.33 to -0.07, p = 0.001). While statistically significant, the effect size was small. Other variables such as age, marital status, and history of mental disorders were not significant predictors of satisfaction. The number of cosmetic surgeries showed a borderline positive association with satisfaction (β = 3.42, 95% CI: -0.02 to 6.86, p = 0.05), suggesting a possible relationship that warrants further investigation.

CONCLUSION

Alexithymia may modestly influence satisfaction with cosmetic surgery, highlighting the importance of emotional awareness in patient-provider communication. Our findings provide compelling evidence that individuals with alexithymia are more likely to report lower levels of satisfaction with their cosmetic procedure outcome.