Saline Breast Implant Life Span?

I have saline breast implants under the muscle. I know the life span for saline implants is 10-15yrs. I just hit the 10yr. anniversary. I am having no problems at all. Should I be pro active and have them replaced soon or do I wait till one deflates.

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8 Doctor Answers | Asked by tamela1 in Cleveland, OH

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Wear your saline implants to the very end

The beauty of the saline implant is that you can wear the implant with safety and confidence until the implant leaks and loses volume. There is no need to consider replacement at ten years like a silicone gel, and you may yet see your implants live on for 10 more years. Best of luck, Peter Johnson, MD

Implant life span

It is a fallacy that implants have a specific life span. If you are not having any issues with your implants, there is no need to replace them. You may enjoy them for many more years without problems. Good luck!

Mennen T. Gallas, MD

8 reviews

Houston Plastic Surgeon

Breast implans

Leave your saline implants alone until one ruptures. You will know when this happens as it will feel squishier and look a bit flatter in the upper part. There is no health risk to the salt water being absorbed by your tissues. At that point you may want to replace both so they are both the same age. Saline implants, especially those placed subpectorally, wrinkle less and can last quite long, even up to 18 or 20 years.

There are no rules about saline.

If you are having no problems, you look good and your happy there is no reason to change an intact problem free saline implant. Because they are just salt water if they leak your body will just absorb the fluid. You could leak tomorrow or in another decade, you just don't know ,but in either case there is no harm waiting. One day you will see a difference or a complete deflation... just give your plactic surgeon a call. It is not and emergency, but most surgeons will try to... more

Saline Breast Implant Life Span?

I really is up to you but as I tell my patients, the most economical thing to do is wait until one goes flat!! In most cases, you will get one or both of the implants replaced at no charge and in my practice, I don't charge patients a surgeons fee to replace a deflated implant. I don't ever want cost to be a reason for a woman to walk around with a deflated implant!! But many women are proactive and don't want to wait until that fateful day!!!

Saline implants don't need replacement unless there is a problem.

During the FDA restrictions on silicone gel implants between 1991 and 2006, I inserted over a thousand pairs of saline implants. Very few have leaked, and until or if they do, I agree with my colleagues who recommend no surgery for "preventive purposes." It's important to realize that if one of your implants does develop a leak, it's usually a tiny pinhole that leaks drops of saline over time rather than deflating rapidly like a "popped" balloon. You would be... more

Saline Breast Implants Exchange?

Thank you for the question. No, there is no “automatic exchange date” for breast implants. Considering that you are “having no problems at all”, there is no indication for removal/replacement. Continue to enjoy the results of your breast surgery.

Saline implant life expectancy

I have seen saline breast implants last longer than 20 years intact. Unless there is another reason you are desiring breast revision, I would not recommend an implant exchange prophylactically. Thank you for the question!