Silicone Implants

Scottsdale – Many patients are contemplating a breast augmentation in Arizona and ask us about silicone breast implants. These questions are often about the differences between the new silicone breast implants when compared to the old breast implants.

We found a useful silicone breast implants video that you should watch:

The silicone breast implants video shows that after slicing through the breast implant shell there is no leaking of the silicone material. The Mentor silicone breast implants use cohesive polymers, not liquids, and it does not leak, as shown in the video. This means the gel filler acts as a solid rather than a liquid. Mentor gel breast implants hold together uniformly, while retaining the natural feel and appearance that resembles actual breast tissue.

Breast implants in Phoenix and Scottsdale, Arizona.

In our Scottsdale plastic surgery practice, we use mostly Mentor silicone breast implants. Silicone gel filled breast implants have been approved for breast augmentation and breast reconstruction in the U.S. since November 2006. An article discussed previously on our blog, summarizes the findings involved with Memory Gel Core Study at 6 years. A close look at the breast augmentation subgroup demonstrates the 6-year rupture rate at a very low 1.1%. This is the lowest implant leakage rate ever reported for a long-term breast implant study.

Older silicone breast implants.

Older silicone breast implants were never FDA approved, did not have cohesive gel, and had weaker shells. Even when not ruptured, the older silicone breast implants, could leak their silicone into the body. The rupture rate for the older silicone breast implants was much higher than those established with the new FDA approved breast implants.

Two key points on the latest FDA-approved breast implants.

Let’s review two key points about how cohesive gel breast implants differ from older implants:

1. Less seeping of silicone: Another key issue is the ability of the silicone particles to travel across the breast implant shell and into the body. With the Mentor cohesive silicone gel formulation the gel acts as a unit rather than a liquid, in other words, it holds together uniformly and retains the natural give that resembles actual breast tissue. It also helps prevent migration, or running, of the gel in the event of a rupture.
2. A stronger shell helps: A key factor is the chemical make up of the implant shell wall. The strength of the material and optimal total thickness of the shell are important to reduce rupture and leaks. Mentor breast implants have a shell wall that is consistently strong with excellent impermeability, contributing to a very low leak rate of 1.1%.