Evaluation of Non-Surgical Treatment of Breast Abscess

August 17, 2026 updated by: Marwa Elsawy Mohamed, Sohag University

Evaluation of the Non-Surgical Treatment of Breast Abscess

Breast abscess is a localized suppurative complication of breast infection commonly managed by ultrasound-guided needle aspiration combined with antibiotic therapy. This prospective observational study aims to evaluate the clinical outcomes and prognostic factors associated with successful non-surgical management versus treatment failure requiring surgical intervention in adult female patients with lactational and non-lactational breast abscesses.

Study Overview

Status

Status

Indicates the current recruitment status or the expanded access status.
Recruiting

Conditions

Conditions

The disease, disorder, syndrome, illness, or injury that is being studied. On ClinicalTrials.gov, conditions may also include other health-related issues, such as lifespan, quality of life, and health risks.

Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

A process or action that is the focus of a clinical study. Interventions include drugs, medical devices, procedures, vaccines, and other products that are either investigational or already available. Interventions can also include noninvasive approaches, such as education or modifying diet and exercise.

Detailed Description

Breast abscess represents a severe complication of mastitis encountered in lactating and non-lactating women. While traditional management relied on incision and drainage, modern approaches emphasize minimally invasive non-surgical treatment using ultrasound-guided needle aspiration combined with appropriate antibiotics to minimize morbidity, accelerate healing, avoid fistula formation, and preserve breastfeeding. This prospective observational study will be conducted at the Department of General Surgery, Sohag University Hospitals. Eligible female patients presenting with lactational or non-lactational breast abscesses will undergo initial non-surgical treatment with ultrasound-guided needle aspiration/re-aspiration with or without catheter drainage plus culture-guided antibiotic therapy. Patients will be followed up clinically and sonographically for 4 weeks to evaluate treatment success, time to resolution, complication rates, and predictors associated with treatment failure requiring surgical intervention.

Study Type

Study Type

Describes the nature of a clinical study. Study types include interventional studies (also called clinical trials), observational studies (including patient registries), and expanded access.
Observational

Enrollment (Estimated)

Enrollment

The number of participants in a clinical study. The "anticipated" enrollment is the target number of participants that the researchers need for the study.
50

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Locations

  • Egypt
      • Sohag, Egypt
        • Recruiting
        • Sohag university hospital
        • Contact:
        • Principal Investigator:
          • Marwa M El-Sawy, MBBCh

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

The key requirements that people who want to participate in a clinical study must meet or the characteristics they must have. Eligibility criteria consist of both inclusion criteria (which are required for a person to participate in the study) and exclusion criteria (which prevent a person from participating). Types of eligibility criteria include whether a study accepts healthy volunteers, has age or age group requirements, or is limited by sex.

Ages Eligible for Study

  • Adult
  • Older Adult

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Sampling Method

Non-Probability Sample

Study Population

Adult female patients presenting with lactational or non-lactational breast abscesses eligible for non-surgical care at the General Surgery outpatient clinic or emergency unit at Sohag University Hospitals.

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • Adult female patients diagnosed with lactational and non-lactational breast abscesses on clinical and sonographic grounds.
  • Patients undergoing initial non-surgical treatment in the form of ultrasound-guided aspiration/re-aspiration with or without catheter drainage plus systemic antibiotics.

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Suspicion of inflammatory breast cancer or underlying breast malignancy.
  • Frank skin necrosis, thinning, or ruptured abscess overlying the affected breast.
  • Patients with breast implants in situ on the affected side.
  • History of breast surgery within 90 days of presentation.
  • Chronic or recurrent breast abscesses.

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

Cohorts and Interventions

Group / Cohort

Group / Cohort

A group or subgroup of participants in an observational study that is assessed for biomedical or health outcomes.
Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

A process or action that is the focus of a clinical study. Interventions include drugs, medical devices, procedures, vaccines, and other products that are either investigational or already available. Interventions can also include noninvasive approaches, such as education or modifying diet and exercise.
Non-Surgical Treatment Cohort
Adult female patients presenting with lactational or non-lactational breast abscess undergoing initial non-surgical management via ultrasound-guided needle aspiration with or without catheter drainage plus systemic antibiotic therapy.
Procedure: Ultrasound-guided needle aspiration and antibiotics
Ultrasound-guided needle aspiration of the abscess cavity (repeated every 2-3 days if residual collection persists) with or without catheter drainage, combined with systemic empirical and culture-sensitive antibiotic therapy.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Primary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, the planned outcome measure that is the most important for evaluating the effect of an intervention/treatment. Most clinical studies have one primary outcome measure, but some have more than one.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Successful Non-Surgical Management Rate
Time Frame: Up to 4 weeks post-treatment
Complete clinical and sonographic resolution of the breast abscess without the necessity of formal surgical incision and drainage during the index episode.
Up to 4 weeks post-treatment

Secondary Outcome Measures

Secondary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, a planned outcome measure that is not as important as the primary outcome measure for evaluating the effect of an intervention but is still of interest. Most clinical studies have more than one secondary outcome measure.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Time to Complete Resolution
Time Frame: Up to 4 weeks
Duration in days required from initiation of treatment until complete clinical and ultrasonographic resolution.
Up to 4 weeks
Number of Aspiration Sessions
Time Frame: Up to 4 weeks
Total number of ultrasound-guided needle aspiration sessions performed to achieve complete resolution.
Up to 4 weeks
Rate of Treatment Failure Requiring Surgical Intervention
Time Frame: Up to 4 weeks
Percentage of patients who failed non-surgical management and required formal surgical incision and drainage.
Up to 4 weeks
Rate of Procedure-Related Complications
Time Frame: Up to 4 weeks
Incidence of complications related to treatment such as skin necrosis, breast fistula formation, and galactocele.
Up to 4 weeks

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Sponsor

Sponsor

The organization or person who initiates the study and who has authority and control over the study.
Sohag University

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start (Actual)

Study Start

The actual date on which the first participant was enrolled in a clinical study. The "anticipated" study start date is the date that the researchers think will be the study start date.
June 1, 2026

Primary Completion (Estimated)

Primary Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention to collect final data for the primary outcome measure. Whether the clinical study ended according to the protocol or was terminated does not affect this date. For clinical studies with more than one primary outcome measure with different completion dates, this term refers to the date on which data collection is completed for all the primary outcome measures. The "anticipated" primary completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the primary completion date for the study.
May 1, 2027

Study Completion (Estimated)

Study Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention/treatment to collect final data for the primary outcome measures, secondary outcome measures, and adverse events (that is, the last participant's last visit). The "anticipated" study completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the study completion date.
May 1, 2027

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

First Submitted

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submitted a study record to ClinicalTrials.gov. There is typically a delay of a few days between the first submitted date and the record's availability on ClinicalTrials.gov (the first posted date).
August 17, 2026

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submits a study record that is consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. The sponsor or investigator may need to revise and submit a study record one or more times before NLM's QC review criteria are met. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
August 17, 2026

First Posted (Actual)

First Posted

The date on which the study record was first available on ClinicalTrials.gov after National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review has concluded. There is typically a delay of a few days between the date the study sponsor or investigator submitted the study record and the first posted date.
August 20, 2026

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

Last Update Posted

The most recent date on which changes to a study record were made available on ClinicalTrials.gov. There may be a delay between when the changes were submitted to ClinicalTrials.gov by the study's sponsor or investigator (the last update submitted date) and the last update posted date.
August 20, 2026

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator submitted changes to a study record that are consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
August 17, 2026

Last Verified

Last Verified

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator confirmed the information about a clinical study on ClinicalTrials.gov as accurate and current. If a study with a recruitment status of recruiting; not yet recruiting; or active, not recruiting has not been confirmed within the past 2 years, the study's recruitment status is shown as unknown.
August 1, 2026

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

Other Study ID Numbers

Identifiers or ID numbers other than the NCT number that are assigned to a clinical study by the study's sponsor, funders, or others. These numbers may include unique identifiers from other trial registries and National Institutes of Health grant numbers.
  • Soh-Med-26-7-12MS

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?

NO

Drug and device information, study documents

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product

No

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product

No

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

Cookie Settings

We use cookies to ensure that we give you the best experience on our website. For more details carefully read our Privacy and Cookies Policy. ...>>>You can change your preferences or withdraw your consent at any time by deleting the cookies from your website or computer as described in the policy. Please accept it and choose your preferences by ticking the corresponding boxes in the "Manage Settings" section below. Please carefully read our Terms of Service before you proceed with using any part of this website.
«Manage Settings