Saline Breast Implants

In the past twenty years, breast implants and breast enhancement surgery has gotten a lot of bad press.  But much of this isn’t fair.  While the major culprit was silicone breast implants, there are still ways out there, that don’t involve silicone, to increase the size of your chest and dramatically alter your physical appearance.

The most popular method of breast enhancement today is the saline breast implant. When the controversy emerged that maybe silicone breast implants were causing cancer, the industry, although not totally sure the information was true, bent to consumer demand and began offering breast implants made out of saline.

This waylaid many people’s fears and the procedure became more popular than ever.  Now women of all ages are having their chest enlarged with saline breast implants…but the real question on most people’s minds us: are they still safe?  Hopefully the following information will help convince you.

Well first of all the FDA (Food and Drug Administration) has said that saline breast implants are indeed safe, but again they have made some mistakes in the past and for some reason people have a hard time trusting this government agency.  And there was a large outcry from many women’s advocacy groups when the FDA decided to approve saline breast implants for surgical procedures.

Here’s why they had a problem:

• The same general risks as any other surgery, including anesthesia.
• Implant deflation. Breast implants can deflate or rupture at any time due to an injury to the breast or through normal wear over time. The deflation usually happens quickly, and because salt water is a natural part of the body, it is absorbed by the body. Surgery is necessary to remove, and perhaps replace, the silicone envelope.
• Breast cancer detection. During a mammography, it may be more difficult to detect breast cancer because the implant can cover up areas that might otherwise give reason to take precautions. The mammography technician must be made aware of your breast implant before taking x-rays, because there are special techniques that can be employed to get the best possible views of the breast tissue with the implant in place.
• Capsular Contracture. The scar tissue or capsule that normally forms around the implant might tighten and squeeze the implant (called capsular contracture). Over months to years, some women have changes in breast shape, hardness or pain as a result of this contraction.
• Calcium deposits in the tissue around the implant.
• Additional surgeries.
• Infection.
• Hematoma.
• Delayed wound healing.
• Changes in feeling in the nipple and breast.
• Shifting of the implant.