Removing ruptured historic Dow Corning implants in my patient after 30 years. She presented clinically with hardening of her left breast (capsular contracture).
Further workup including clinical and imaging examinations revealed extracapsular rupture which means the implant and the shell surrounding were compromised and needed to be removed.
These implants were taken off the market by the FDA in the 1980s. After the silicone implant moratorium in 1991, extensive premarket approval studies were required by the implant companies prior to the ban being lifted. This has resulted in extensive research and also produced much higher quality silicone cohesive or “gummy” implants with a much more stable shell and gel to shell fill ratio.
Today’s implants no longer demonstrate “gel bleed” and the increased silicone crosslinking adds stability and a higher safety margin.
The companies also provide short and long term warranty coverage and as board-certified plastic surgeons, we enter all implantable devices into a databank for better tracking.
See a board-certified plastic surgeon to discuss treatment options regarding breast implants and safety profiles.
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