Originally Posted by Kontact

Drop bars and flat MTB bars position your arm and shoulder joint differently. For elbows down (drop bar position), your really don't want to go much wider than your shoulder width because you are pushing the shoulder joint closer to its limits. The classic bar width formula gives you a bar that is good for your shoulders and wide enough to not interfere with breathing, though going narrower is rarely a problem.

If I had 44cm shoulders, I would not get 46cm drop bars to avoid shoulder damage/discomfort.

You aren't going to benefit from the tiny difference in leverage.