THE ROLE OF DIAGNOSTIC-IMAGING IN WOMEN WITH BREAST IMPLANTS

Women who have undergone augmentation mammoplasty with silicone gel im plants may present for routine breast cancer screening for with palpab le breast lumps. Conventional mammography supplemented by additional d isplaced or Eklund view is usually sufficient to detect most abnormali ties. Ultrasonographic evaluation may be performed as an ancillary tec hnique to characterize palpable lumps or nonpalpable lesions detected on mammography. In patients suspected of having implant rupture, conve ntional mammography and displaced views are performed. If clinical fin dings warrant, magnetic resonance imaging may be performed to detect i ntracapsular and extracapsular rupture and migration of silicone globu les to the axilla, branchial plexus and adjacent structures.