Breast Implant Deflation and Rupture

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Breast Implant Deflation / Rupture

Breast implant manufacturers concur that breast implants are not considered lifetime devices. They may rupture or deflate for various reasons, including, but not limited to: closed capsulotomy, trauma to the breast, injury from surgical instruments, normal wear and tear on the implant, and mechanical damage prior to or during surgery.

Mentor and Inamed (formerly McGhan) offer lifetime warranties on their implants. However, if an implant is ruptured due to a closed capsulotomy, or via any surgical procedure, such as an open capsulotomy, the warranty is voided.

Overfilling and underfilling may cause too much tension on the implant shell, thus making it more prone to rupture. Both implant manufacturers recommend filling the implant to at least the minimum recommended fill amount for the particular implant size you get, and no more than the maximum recommended amount. Usually, overfilling by only a small amount will not pose that great of a risk. But, I have heard of women having their implants overfilled by as much as 50-100cc, and sometimes more. Not only does this make the breast implant much firmer, bit puts you at great risk for rupture / deflation.

Under-filling the implant will cause the implant to have folds in it. When these folds constantly rub together, it increases the likelihood of rupture due to the constant "wear and tear" on the implant. Implants should be filled within their recommended ranges to avoid these problems. Mentor and McGhan reserve the right to void warranties on implants that have been overfilled or underfilled.

In a prospective clinical study conducted by Mentor, the cumulative, 3-year, by patient rates of a first occurrence of deflation were 3% for 1264 augmentation patients and 9% for 416 reconstruction patients. In a prospective clinical study conducted by McGhan, the cumulative, 3-year, by patient rates of a first occurrence of deflation were 5% for the 901 augmentation patients and 6% for the 237 reconstruction patients.

Implant warranty information is available here.

Photo of ruptures silicone gel breast implant here.

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