While there are many women who are happy and satisfied with their implant-based breast reconstructions, we think it is important that women considering breast implants understand certain significant information. Perhaps most importantly, a high rate of unplanned re-operation has repeatedly been demonstrated for women who opt to have an implant-based breast reconstruction.
According to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the agency responsible for regulating breast implants, common consequences of implant reconstruction include unplanned re-operation and implant failure. It is also important to know that routine MRI (every two years beginning three years after surgery) is recommended for women who have silicone-filled breast implants to monitor for rupture.
A common myth suggests that women who have breast implants breast need to have their implants changed every ten years. While there is no need to routinely remove and replace breast implants regardless of how long they have been in a person’s body, problems with implants that require additional surgery including implant removal, occur increasingly the longer an implant has been in place. FDA makes clear that breast implants are not lifetime devices.
The risks and benefits of surgery involving a breast implant should be carefully weighed.
The information below comes directly from the FDA’s website:
Date collected by FDA and published in the official labeling of breast implants find that: