A REVIEW OF 198 PATIENTS (389 IMPLANTS) WHO HAD BREAST IMPLANTS REMOVED

Because of the large number of women now returning to their plastic su rgeons with concerns about their breast implants many years after surg ery, we are afforded an ideal opportunity to evaluate these patients o ver the long-term. This study reviewed 198 patients (389 implants) who underwent explantation by two surgeons over a 2-year period, correlat ing prosthesis type, location, and length of time since implantation w ith two adverse endpoints, implant rupture and symptomatic capsular co ntracture. Significant findings included a relatively high rate of imp lant rupture in patients whose implants had been in place over 20 year s, an increased incidence of both symptomatic capsular contracture and implant rupture in single lumen gel implants and a positive correlati on between severity of capsular contracture and implant rupture.