Breast Implants: Q&A
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What is the Life Span of the "Improved" Silicon Gel Breast Implants?
I've heard that because of the thicker shell and the more cohesive gel, the silicone implants nowadays will last much longer. What is the average life span of the improved silicone implants?
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12 Doctor Answers |
Asked by
Anza
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Silocone breast Implants
Silicone gel is inert and is not absorbed by the body, and in cohesive silicone gel implants the material remains inside the implant shell rather than leaking into the space around the implant contained by the fibrous capsule. So when the shell of a cohesive silicone gel implant fails, there are no signs or symptoms that this has happened. The breast looks and feels the same, and the only way a patient would know that one of their cohesive silicone gel implants has failed would be to undergo...
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Implants have a life time warranty
Hello,
All implants, silicone or saline carry a life time warranty against defects. Most women get them replaced as part of improving the size and shape of their breasts as they age. I think national average is around 10 years for this process but if you are happy with the appearence of your breasts with the implants that you choose there is no specific time fram or reason to have them replaced.
All the best,
Dr Repta
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Life span of silicone implants
Silicone implants of today are made of a cohesive gel . This gel does not leak or break down even if the outer shell is compromised. In fact, you can cut these implants in half and you will see very little change. These implants have been nicknamed, "Gummy Bear Implants." These silicone shells are stronger and less prone to leasks and the filler gel is still far thicker and vicous than fillers in the past. Regardless, the life span of the implant is...
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Life span of Implants
I tell all my patients that there is no guarantee on how long they will last. On average maybe around 15 years but I've changed implants out that were 25 years old and I have seen implants fail in just a few years after surgery. As is true with any man-made device, there will be wear and tear. Bottom line: at some point you will need to change your implants out.
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What is the Life Span of the "Improved" Silicon Gel Breast Implants?Answer:
It kind of depends on what you mean by “lifespan” because it’s probably 10-12 years on average before they get a hole in the shell, but then who knows on how long they might go until you would eventually notice anything different…if ever at all! We have all seen patients even with the old gel implants that had theirs for 30 yrs only later to discover on a routine mammogram that they were broken! However with the new cohesive gel, its hard to say what we will see 30...
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Life span of implants
It is hard to predict the lifespan of breast implants. They can last a lifetime for some but most need to be changed or exchanged sometime down the road for either leakage, capsular contracture, infection, etc..
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What is the Life Span of the "Improved" Silicon Gel Breast Implants?
Breast implants are no different than all other man-made devices be their cars, planes, roofs, shoes etc. Eventually, wear and tear causes all such things to fail. Just as you see old planes flown by collectors and old cars driven about, these devices all have a lift time but it is never uniform. Some live and function longer than others. The same is true with breast implants. It is safe to say that breast implants can fail a day after surgery to as long as 30 years after surgery. Both are...
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Longevity Of Silicone Gel Breast Implants
The reality is that no one knows for sure how long any breast implant will last. It is presumed that newer generation silicone gel implants will last longer than those in the past and that would certainly seem to be true with improved manufacturing methods and materials development. But until the currently used silicone gel implants have been used for 15 to 20 years, their average lifespan will remain speculative. This is why it is important to recognize that most breast implants will...
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Life span of silicone implants
The incidence of silicone implant rupture with thicker shells and cohesive silicone gel is around 1% per year based on current statistics. Both Allergan and Mentor currently provide you with a lifetime replacement warranty. If you ever have a rupture, they will give you a free replacement implant and, if that rupture occurs in the first 10 years after surgery, the will also pay you up to $2400-3500 towards the cost of replacement.
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Life Span of Silicone Implants...
I agree with the statistics presented by Dr. Pousti regarding reported silicone gel leakage/rupture rates, although I haven't seen comparable information with respect to, exclusively, the new Mentor "Memory Gel" cohesive gel implants.
As an additional note, I would like to point out that these implants now carry a standard manufacturer 10-year warranty for surgical replacement of any implants shown to leak or rupture.
I have been using the Mentor Memory Gel...
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Life span of modern silicone implants
The modern implants are too new for anyone to know for sure their exact lifespan. The chance of rupture (without a serious injury) is likely to be less than 1%. Most manufacturers provide a lifetime warranty which is a good indicator of their confidence in the product.
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Life Span of Silicone Gel Implants
Thank you for the question.
Unfortunately, no one knows what the “average lifespan” of the silicone gel implants is. The breast implant companies report a silicone gel leakage/ rupture rate of about 0.7 to 1% per year. One study showed that 4% of patients had silicone gel leakage over the course of 7 years. Besides leakage of the implant there are other reasons (for example encapsulation) that may require eventual implant removal.
I hope this helps.
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