Breast implants change
With time women having breast implants experience various thoughts concerning theirs breasts: either there are dissatisfied with the present aesthetic view which has changed over time or for the peace of mind want to change implants placed many years ago. Unfortunately, some cases prompting to breast implant replacement or removal may be related with health problems.
The most often reasons when implants need replacing or removing include:
– Leakage or rupturing of the implant. If a saline implant develops a leak then the body will absorb the saline giving a noticeably smaller and softer appearance very quickly. A leak in a silicone implant may only be noticed if a mammogram or MRI scan is carried out;
– capsular contracture. Suffering from capsular contracture (encapsulation) patient feels the implant hard and painful due to the formation of excess scar tissue around the implant as the body treats the implant as a foreign body. The shape of breast may also look strange.
– change of size or shape of the breast caused by an infection or bleeding.
Breast implants removal or replacement is generally more straightforward surgery than breast augmentation as the “pocket” or “capsule” for the implant is already formed, although some discomfort is expected. The same as breast augmentation, breast implants are normally removed or replaced under general anaesthesia and requires one to two hours to complete. Patients must stay one overnight in the clinic.
Like all surgical procedures, with breast implant removal or replacement surgery there is always a possibility of complications. Although these complications are extremely rare, they can include infection, adverse reaction to anaesthesia, excessive bleeding, unsatisfactory results. Important to notice, that if the implant shell has been damaged or ruptured it may be impossible to remove all of the escaped gel from the surrounding tissues.
Some other consequences include a longer scar than that which resulted from the original implant-placement procedure and diminished or altered breast sensation. Also, however, it is not possible to predict the breast shape precisely after this surgery.
Recently the media has been flooded with reports concerning breast implants manufactured by French company, Poly Implant Prosthese (PIP). Despite claims that PIP silicone breast implants ‘have no cancer link’ and there is no need for women to have them removed, reliable sources state: “These implants have a higher failure rate so there will be women who might choose to have their implants removed before that happens, whereas others will be happy to be monitored.” (Douglas McGeorge, consultant plastic surgeon and former president of the British Association of Aesthetic Plastic Surgeons (BAAPS) at http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-16280458). French government clarifies that PIP implants are made of the industrial grade silicone which is more irritating to tissues if the implant ruptures and advices to replace implants with current approved ones.
Our clinic uses reliable and worldwide acknowledged Polytech and Motiva.