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My Breast Implants Ruptured Within a Year of Surgery. What Are my Rights?

asked 1 year ago by KimHeaven in Chatham, ON
Latest answer by Farhad Rafizadeh, MD
Question viewed 470 times
Tags: patient rights, rupture

I had breast augmentation a year ago,I'm concerned that one of implant has ruptured.3 months after surgery, i felt numbness pain, and tingly, burning sensation on my left breast.I brought this attention to my PS,He said it was normal, and it was part of the healing process.A year later,my left breast still feels the same, but the pain is more intense.I recently has an MRI, and i was right, my left ruptured.Should this additional procedure be covered financially by the doctor? what are my rights?

13 answers to My Breast Implants Ruptured Within a Year of Surgery. What Are my Rights?

Breast Implant Rupture? What are my rights?

First of all, it sounds as if you are talking to lawyers about "rights" rather than asking your doctor about your worries (or trusting his answers). If you no longer trust your plastic surgeon, seek additional opinions from other experienced board-certified plastic surgeons--you may be surprised to find that they concur with your doctor. Will you continue to mistrust anyone who does not agree with your self-diagnosis, or will you trust a scan that the FDA acknowledges is incorrect... more

Richard H. Tholen, MD, FACS
Minneapolis Plastic Surgeon

www.mpsmn.com

Breast Augmentation, Breast Enlargement, Breast Implants

All of the breast implant manufactures have a warranty against defects of the implants, If your implant is ruptured or no longer can function as an implant, then you can get a free implant. Some of the companies offer an extended warranty that will cover some of your expenses for up to 10 years. Check with your plastic surgeon for details. It is not the surgeons fault and there is no reason to go after the surgeon.

Jay H. Ross, MD
Tampa Plastic Surgeon

What can a patient do if they think their breast implants are ruptured?

It seems to me that you are associating the sensation of pain and numbness with a potential rupture of breast implants. When a silicone gel breast implant ruptures it typically does not cause pain or numbness. Therefore you should not associate these two things. You should find a qualified plastic surgeon that you trust and let him decide if you have a ruptured implant. If you do then the manufacturer will replace the implant for you and to some degree participate in the cost of surgery. more

Farhad Rafizadeh, MD
Morristown Plastic Surgeon

Ruptured implants

Implants do have warranty for more than a year depanding on the type and the company. Rupture usually is not a fault of the doctor. In my experience, MRI frequently gives false positive results which means that the implant may be intact although the MRI shows a rupture.

S. Ozan Sozer, MD
El Paso Plastic Surgeon

Rights

The implants are warrantied by the company and depending upon the manufacturer, they will provide you a stipend to defer some of the costs.

Marc Schneider, MD
Fort Myers Plastic Surgeon

Warranty

Your implants have a lifetime warranty, depending on which implant company's product you have will depend on what type of warranty. Usually, they will cover the ruptured implant and may reimburse you a fraction of the surgical cost. Unfortuanetly, rupture is a risk with having breast implants, but this is correctable. Best of Luck to you!

Michael A. Fiorillo, MD
New York Plastic Surgeon

Ruptured implant

Most plastic surgeons, including myself, purchase a lifetime warranty on implants. If they rupture within the first 10 years, the implant company should replace the implant and also pay a portion of the costs of having the surgery to replace the implant. If after 10 years the implant ruptures, they will onyl replace the implant. Make sure your surgeon is certified by the American Board of Plastic Surgery Samer W. Cabbabe, M.D. Board - certified plastic... more

Samer W. Cabbabe, MD
Saint Louis Plastic Surgeon

Ruptured implant...

Putting aside the possibility that the MRI is incorrect (which certainly does happen), you should have the defective implant replaced. Both Mentor and Allergan have warrantees on their implants - so you will be able to get a new pair of implants, and some money to help reduce your costs. But it won't be free. You may choose any surgeon you like. But in terms of whether the first surgeon somehow "owes" you something, most people would say... more

Thomas Fiala, MD
Altamonte Springs Plastic Surgeon

Implant rupture

An implant rupture is certainly not the fault of your surgeon at this point. The implant company usually covers the cost of the implants and some portions of the surgery. You should find out which company provided your implant, and what their policy is.

Steven Wallach, MD
Manhattan Plastic Surgeon

Premature breast implant rupture is covered by warranty

The two major breast implant companies, Mentor and Allergan both have product warranties which cover breast implants that rupture prematurely, before 10 years. The warranty usually covers the implants and money toward the cost of replacement. Perhaps you surgeon will work with you and accept the insurance coverage. Best of luck, peterejohnsonmd

Peter E. Johnson, MD
Chicago Plastic Surgeon

www.peterejohnsonmd.com

Silicone Breast Implant Rupture

Dear KimHeaven: Breast implant rupture is not usually painful. Saline implants will deflate rapidly, so there can be some aches, but usually nothing severe. The loss of volume is easy to see, and an MRI is unnecessary. I am assuming you have silicone gel filled breast implants. These implants are filled with a cohesive gel, so when the shell breaks, the gel can stay in the implant pocket with no symptoms. The volume is usually maintained, and there is no pain. This is called... more

Joseph Mele, MD
Walnut Creek Plastic Surgeon

Manufacturer Warranties for Breast Implant Failure/Rupture - You Should Know Them Before Having Breast Augmentation

Rupture of breast implants, either saline or silicone, is a well-known risk of breast augmentation surgery. Whether it happens one month, one year or ten years later...or maybe never... is unpredictable. When rupture is detected, the manufacturers have warranties. These warranties do not come from the implanting plastic surgeon nor is the plastic surgeon responsible for a device-related issue. The manufacturer knows, as should have been explained to you prior to your surgery, that... more

Barry L. Eppley, MD, DMD
Indianapolis Plastic Surgeon

www.eppleyplasticsurgery.com

Ruptured silicone implants, how to treat

Silicone implants are covered under a warranty in the event that they rupture. If you are having symptoms(such as pain, tingling, etc.) then you should have your implant removed and replaced. There will not be a charge for the new implant but you may need to pay some of the costs associated with the anesthesia and operating room fees. Contact the breast implant manufacturer for more details but you should be reimbursed about 3500 if both implants are defective. The rupture rate of... more