In response to the recent controversy over silicone gel implants, alte
rnative substances are being sought to offer new options in bioimplant
able materials. Polyester is a Food and Drug Administration-approved p
rosthetic material utilized in vascular grafts for decades without sig
nificant problems in body tolerance. Working with textile scientists,
polyester (both in its woven and fibrous forms) was engineered to infl
uence differential fibrous ingrowth. Implants of medical-grade polyest
er Were constructed in a 3-cm(2) diskette configuration. Four combinat
ions of material with varying layers of weave and fiber were created t
o influence tissue ingrowth differentially. Four implants were placed
in separate dorsal pockets beneath the panniculus carnosus of each of
12 adult female New Zealand White rabbits. Care was taken to sort the
implant types equally among the four quadrants such that a similar dis
tribution of implants existed between animals. implants with intact ca
psules were harvested at 1, 3, and 6 months, and were analyzed for his
tology, capsular thickness, and tissue ingrowth, A phantom mammogram w
as taken through the implant material that did not obscure interpretat
ion. The materials were further tested to determine fiber fill-to-wet
implant weight ratios to determine postimplantation weight predictably
. Tensile strength was also determined.