PURPOSE

Sports bras are an essential piece of sporting equipment for women to be able to participate comfortably in activity. The breasts sit atop of the chest with minimal anatomical support and are impacted by multidirectional forces. Dampening of these motions with suitable support may enable more women to participate in sport. However, in the limited data that exists on sports bras, women are often wearing ill-fitting bras. Furthermore, bra fit appropriateness has not been previously studied in an American cohort or in an adolescent population.

 

METHODS

This was a cross-sectional study of girls and women who were seen in the University of Rochester Medical Center (URMC) Orthopaedics sports medicine clinics for a musculoskeletal complaint. Women and girls ages 11-64 years old were eligible for recruitment. The study protocol was approved by the URMC Institutional Review Board. Participant demographics and sports bra characteristics were collected, in addition to participants’ self-reported bra size. Bra size was then objectively measured by study staff using a uniform method of measuring band and bust size. Cup size was calculated from these measurements. Statistical analyses were performed to assess for differences and concordance using SAS, version 9.4 (Cary, NC).

 

RESULTS

There were 69 women and girls in the cohort. Mean age was 22.5 +/-12.4 years and 88.4% were white. Of the reported band sizes, 56.9% did not match the objectively measured band size, with the vast majority of discordance being underestimations (87.9%). Of the reported cup sizes, 44.1% did not match the objectively measured cup sizes, with the majority of the discordance being overestimations (61.5%). Examining both components (cup and band size), there was 58.1% discordance between self-reported and objectively determined measurements. Concordance did not significantly differ based on breast asymmetry, breast pain/discomfort with activity, previous professional bra fitting, bra cup size or body mass index. Women who could correctly identify their cup size were older (25.6+/-14.27) than patients who could not (19.7+/-9.8) (p=0.054). While the majority of participants (69.6%) were satisfied/very satisfied with the fit of their sports bra, only 34.8% reported they had previously had a professional bra fitting and 39.1% reported that they felt their breast size had increased in the past year.

 

CONCLUSIONS

Our results show that there is a large discordance between perceived and objectively measured sports bra size. Improper bra fit may be a significant contributor to women being inactive or prevent them from comfortably participating in sports. Important next steps from this pilot are to purposefully recruit a more diverse cohort in addition to comparing concordance in athletes versus non-athletes and obese and non-obese women. 

 

Disclosures: The authors have nothing to disclose.