Home | Site Map | Contact Us | About Us | Articles | Tips | Resources | Links
Some surgeons feel that silicone implants have a more natural look and feel
than saline implants because silicone gel has a texture that is similar to
breast tissue. Saline implants have some advantages over silicone implants.
Silicone implant ruptures are harder to detect. When saline implants rupture,
they deflate and the results are seen almost immediately. When silicone implants
rupture, the breast often looks and feels the same because the silicone gel may
leak into surrounding areas of the breast without a visible difference.
Replacing a ruptured silicone gel implant is more difficult than repairing a
saline implant. Silicone implants also have a higher rate of capsular
contracture and a higher deflation rate.
Saline Implants
Saline implants have a silicone rubber shell that is inflated to the desired
size with sterile saline. Most implants have a valve that is sealable by the
surgeon.
There are two types of saline-filled implants. One type is a fixed volume
implant, which is filled with the entire volume of saline at implantation.
Another type is an adjustable volume implant, which is filled intraoperatively
and has the potential for further postoperative adjustment.
FDA Approval
On May 10, 2000, the FDA granted approval of saline-filled breast implants
manufactured by Mentor Corporation and McGhan Medical. To date, all other
manufacturers' saline-filled breast implants are considered investigational.
Silicone Implants
Silicone implants have a silicone rubber shell that is filled with a fixed
amount of silicone gel. Each implant has a patch that covers the manufacturing
port of the implant.
Silicone implants vary in shell surface (smooth/textured), shape, profile,
volume, shell thickness, and number of shell lumens. Most silicone gel-filled
implants are not adjustable.
In the early 1990's it was reported that silicone breast implants were
responsible for connective tissue diseases in some women. After a comprehensive
evaluation of the evidence for the Association of Silicon Breast Implants with
human health conditions, the Institute of Medicine concluded in June that there
is "no definitive evidence linking breast implants to cancer, neurological
diseases, neurological problems or other systemic diseases." However, silicone
implants are still not available to the general public in the United States.
They are still widely used in Europe and may be available again in the US.
Silicone gel-filled breast implants are available for select cases: women
seeking breast reconstruction or revision of an existing breast implant, women
who have had breast cancer surgery, a severe injury to the breast, a birth
defect that affects the breast, or a medical condition causing a severe breast
abnormality.
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services states:
"For some years controversy has existed over silicone implants used for breast
augmentation or replacement after mastectomy. Adverse effects from their use
have been widely reported in the popular press, with conflicting information
often appearing in the medical literature. This controversy and the attendant
publicity led the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) first to ban any use of
these implants and then to permit limited use, mainly as replacement after
mastectomy.
"Silicone is used not only in breast implants but also in implants located
literally throughout every part of the body. It has been used: to construct
heart valves and other cardiovascular prostheses; to fashion catheters which are
used for purposes ranging from drug delivery to cardiac monitoring; in
dentistry; in the gastrointestinal tract; as a facilitator for nerve
regeneration; in ophthalmology; in the ear, nose, throat, and respiratory tract;
as a prosthesis or ingredient in prostheses for many parts of the skeletal
system; as a tissue expander; as a cosmetic agent for treatment of scars and
wrinkles; in the urogenital tract, including penile prostheses; and in many
other applications."
Source :
http://www.smartbreastaugmentation.com/implants.html