Today in clinic I visited with a patient that had silicone implants placed 20 years ago.  She had been referred to me because she had undergone an MRI for an unrelated reason and her implants were noted to be ruptured on the study.  I recommended that she replace her implants.  She asked, “My breasts haven’t gotten any smaller.  Why do I need to replace my implants?”

Unlike saline implants which will deflate, silicone breast implants can rupture and a woman may remain completely asymptomatic and not be aware of it.  This is termed a “silent” rupture.   If this occurs, the silicone gel spills into the space around the implant that is contained by the scar that the body develops around the implant (capsule).  The problem with this is that at times the gel can then migrate from this space into the breast tissue.  Silicone migration can occur even further and reports have shown that it can reach the elbow region, shoulder, chest, abdomen, groin, and even the shins.  The migrated gel can cause inflammation that presents as nodules under the skin.  These nodules are called siliconomas.  Siliconomas can cause pain and at times may create a communication to the skin’s surface that will ulcer and then drain.  Migrated gel has also been reported to cause lymphadenopathy (inflammed lymph nodes), infection,  fibrosis, and skin retraction.  The management of this problem usually requires surgical excision.  Depending on the area involved and the amount of silicone to be removed this can be very difficult or disfiguring.  So to answer this patient’s question; replacement of leaking silicone implants should be performed to avoid these problems. 

Our websites www.beauty-surgeon.com and www.drmckane.com have additional information and before and after photographs of silicone breast augmentation  for review.  I invite you to schedule a consultation with me if you would like to learn more about silicone breast augmentation or silicone migration.  Please feel free to contact our office at (713) 661-5255 if you have any questions.

-Brice W. McKane, M.D.

© 2009, Dr. McKane. All rights reserved.