MIGRATION OF SILICONE THROUGH THE FIBROUS CAPSULES OF MAMMARY PROSTHESES

The usual reaction of the human body to implantation of a silicone pro sthesis is formation of a fibrous capsule. Local reactions to silicone outside this fibrous capsule and distant migration of silicone partic les have been described. So far, transcapsular migration of silicone p articles from the mammary implant through the fibrous capsule of mamma ry prostheses has not been studied. In this prospective study 71 capsu les found in 40 patients were histologically studied, The chi-squared test was applied to evaluate a possible correlation between silicone m igration on the one hand and implant age and integrity of the prosthes es on the other. The degree of silicone migration was discerned in fou r stages. Stage 1 represents no silicone particles in the capsule, sta ge 2 represents migration up to less than half of the capsule thicknes s, stage 3 shows migration confined to the outer half of the capsule t hickness, and stage 4 means transcapsular silicone migration, In only 4 of 71 capsules no migration into or through the capsule was observed , The degree of silicone migration was significantly less in patients in whom the capsule was calcified and was significantly more in patien ts in whom implantation exceeded 12 years, There was no significant co rrelation between the status of the prosthesis (intact, bleeding, or r uptured) and the degree of silicone migration.