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What is the Average "Life" of a Breast Implant?

asked 3 years ago by beauty advice in Washington
Latest answer by Paul C. Zwiebel, MD
Question viewed 17,571 times
Tags: duration, last, life span

What is the procedure for replacing implants? I have had my saline implants for over 15 yrs. How long is the expected time period before you need to replace them? Is the procedure more painful or difficult than the original implant? I have a lot of rippling, even though I went under the muscle. My bags are textured, I believe. I also think that they may have loss some of their initial volume. Can you describe the average "life" of an implant, the replacement procedure and any new advancements in the last year or two? Thank you

25 answers to What is the Average "Life" of a Breast Implant?

Longevity of the Breast Implant

The expected longevity of an implant is 10 -20 years. However, if you are happy with the current state of the breast implants, you should not rush to exchange them. Instead, you should monitor if their is any lost volume or if a leak occurs. If you have either lost volume or a leakage, then you should consult with a board certified plastic surgeon regarding your options.

Kris M. Reddy, MD, FACS
West Palm Beach Plastic Surgeon

Breast implants last 10 to 15 years on average

I tell my patients that the life of an implant is about 10 to 15 years, depending on different factors. The largest of these factors is if they get a capsular contracture or not. I can't remember an implant rupturing in my practice within 10 years without a capsular contracture. The ones that do not get a capsular contracture last much longer, as there is no fold failure in the wall from the scar being smaller than the implant causing it to have a fold in the envelope of the implant... more

Dan Mills, MD
Orange County Plastic Surgeon

Replacing older implants

Beauty advice: You have a few different choices such as when to replace and what to use for the replacement. With saline filled implants I would recommend you wait until you have a deflation (which you'll easily see) or another problem (if the rippling bothers you enough, etc.). With saline implants, the removal and replacement is relatively easy. The new implant is placed in the old space, with little modification. You do not experience much discomfort compared to initial augmentation,... more

Sutton Graham II, MD
Greenville Plastic Surgeon

BREAST PROSTHESIS / IMPLANT LIFESPAN IS ON AVERAGE AT 10 YEARS

The procedure for replacing implants is much easier than the initial augmentation in the majority of cases. The implant manufacturers state that the implants should be replaced every ten years. The reality is that the implants should be changed when: you decide you want a change (increase or decrease volume, behind or in front of the muscle, saline for silicone etc......) or there is a problem with the implant (deflation, rupture, rippling, capsule formation etc....)... more

Carlos Cordoba, MD
Montreal Plastic Surgeon

Life of breast implants

Your implants expire when you have a reason to have them removed and/or replaced. Reasons include leaking and hardening. The most common reason I remove implants, however, is that the patient has had a change in her body or life circumstances or wants to upgrade to gel implants or wants a different size of implants. You would likely do better as far as rippling is concerned with smooth gels and they should last you until - well, you decide they are expired! ... more

Lisa L. Sowder, MD
Seattle Plastic Surgeon

www.sowdermd.com

New advances in breast implants

I agree I with some of the advice from the other surgeons; the average life span of a saline implant is about 10-15 years. However, if your implant has lost volume, it is leaking and should be replaced no matter its age. The most recent advance in breast implant technology is a new device called "Ideal Implant" which is currently going through and FDA trial. It is a saline implant which was designed with an internal baffling system with the intent of decreasing implant rippling as... more

Kevin Brenner, MD
Los Angeles Plastic Surgeon

Sounds like your implants are ok

Implants last an average of 10-15 years. This is an average. So, some will fail at 5 years and some will fail at 25 or 30 years. Rippling is an unfortunate consequence of saline filled implants, especially textured ones. If it is a straightforward replacement that you require, the procedure should be a simple one. Also, if your original implants were placed from the axilla (armpit) you may need a different incision. Good luck!

Kenneth R. Francis, MD
Manhattan Plastic Surgeon

Saline implants' lives end when they deflate

With saline implants, leakage or deflation signals the end of their useful lifespan. If the implants do not deflate then they are good until they no longer serve you well (i.e the rippling is too obvious, the size is not acceptable, the shape or position is not agreeable). Replacement after 15 years can be as simple as opening up the capsule, separating the implants from the capsule and replacing the implants with a different implant. Or, it can be very involved if the position of the... more

Robin T.W. Yuan, MD
Beverly Hills Plastic Surgeon

Implants aren't usually replaced, unless necessary

There are a lot of different statistics regarding implant service life, and the lifespan varies depending on saline/silicone/round/teardrop/smooth/textured, etc. I have found that round, smooth, saline filled implants last an average of 14 years. This is NOT absolute fact, just observation and from reading. Of course, some will last way longer, and I have seen some crap out after a few days or weeks, due to manufacturing defect. In any event, it is safe to say that if you are happy with the... more

Scott E. Kasden, MD
Dallas Plastic Surgeon

Average implant life span is 10-15 years

The general life span we use is 10-15 years. These numbers came from studies showing that breast implants start to have micro-ruptures and could start leaking around that time. I tell all my patients that it is prudent to exchange them but they do not have to do that except with problems. In your case, it seems that you have rippling as well. The best answer is to replace your implant with a gel implant. This procedure is much easier compared to the first implantation. Good Luck! more

Hisham Seify, MD, PhD
Los Angeles Plastic Surgeon

Saline Implants Don't Have an Expiration Date

You need not replace your saline implants unless you are having a problem. If you wish to improve appearance, feel, and rippling, discuss changing to silicone gel-filled implants with your plastic surgeon. Smooth implants tend to feel a little softer and ripple less than textured implants.

Paul C. Zwiebel, MD
Denver Plastic Surgeon

Textured saline implants can deflate and need replacement

If you have more rippling and loss of volume, your implant(s) may indeed have a tiny leak in the textured surface. This will eventually completely deflate if not replaced. When one leaks, the other may be fine for many more years, or it too may soon fail like the first one. In my patients with saline implants with deflation or just rippling alone, I recommend the present generation of cohesive silicone gel implants which cannot leak or deflate, (and do not require MRI scans as... more

Richard H. Tholen, MD, FACS
Minneapolis Plastic Surgeon

Lifespan of an implant has many determinants

Like any medical device, a breast implant has a finite lifespan and will need to be revisited 10-20 years, after initial implantation. Saline implants can leak from "fold fatigue", which can be understood as attritional failure of the folds, which rub against each other. Fold fatigue is more frequent in textured devices as well as underfilled saline implants, which correlates with your observation that you have both palpable as well as visible ripples in the lower... more

Lavinia Chong, MD
Orange County Plastic Surgeon

The failure rate of saline implants is around 2% at 10 years (higher with texturized)

Texturized implants have a higher failure rate, more problems with rippling, and no lower contracture rate. For these reasons I have stopped using them. Implants that are intact do not need to be replaced at any interval, silicone or saline. It sounds as though you have a separate aesthetic problem and might want to have your implants replaced so they look and feel better. I suggest smooth wall silicone gel filled implants.

Vincent N. Zubowicz, MD
Atlanta Plastic Surgeon

Implant life expectancy

Breast implants are a medical device with a limited life-expectancy. This is mostly related to the integrity of the implant wall. Saline implants have a 10% rupture rate at 10 years. That means 4 out of 5 women (2 implants) will have saline implants last over 10 years. The rupture rate does go up from there, but I tell all my patients at Central Ohio Plastic Surgery (1) to expect that placement of breast implants will not be the last surgery they have... more

Jason Brett Lichten, MD
Columbus Plastic Surgeon

Duration of Breast Implants / When to Replace them

Every product produced by man has a finite existence. Just like every car, plane or roof would eventually fail, breast implants are no exception and they too always fail. Failure is usually the results of thousands of in and out-foldings of the shell resulting in a perforation through which the filler (saline or gel) escapes deflating the implant. Although newer, better engineered implants last longer than older implants, they too can fail anywhere from the time of surgery to 25 years later... more

Peter A. Aldea, MD
Memphis Plastic Surgeon

Saline implant life 10-20 years on average

Saline implants last 10-20 years on average. Textured implants may ripple more than smoth walled ones. Replacement usually hurts less than the original placement unless additional work is added. It can usually be done through the original incision. Best Regards.

John P. Di Saia, MD
Orange Plastic Surgeon

How long do breast implants last?

Breast Implants can last a lifetime. But if a saline implant fails, it is usually pretty obvious. It sounds like you're less than completelty happy with your current result. You should see a board-certified plastic surgeon with experience in this technique.

Jack Gelman, MD
Frankfort Plastic Surgeon

Breast implant longevity

Breast implants are very well made and could possibly last a very long time, or even a life time. Unlikely though, as the breast goes thru many changes, there will likely come a time where you will need additional surgery. Saline implants have a tendency to ripple, textured ones even more so. The muscle helps prevent rippling medially and superiorly but not inferiorly or laterally where there is no muslce coverage. The pain for redo surgery is a lot less that your original surgery.... more

Farbod Esmailian, MD
Orange County Plastic Surgeon

Breast implant life span

The implant companies used to say they last 10 years, but I tell my patients that if they stay soft and feel fine, then leave them alone.

Steven Wallach, MD
Manhattan Plastic Surgeon

No average life span for breast implants

"There ain't no such thing as average" especially when it comes to implants. In my experience, I have patients with implants that are functioning as long as thirty years and I have seen others fail within a year. In your case it seems you would benefit from a consultation with your plastic surgeon for the reasons you stated.

Barry H. Dolich, MD
Bronx Plastic Surgeon

Breast implants can last 15 years or longer

Beauty advice, You question is a very important one and comes up frequenty on the Realself site. I spent a good deal of time with this issue during every consultation in my office concerning breast augmentation. Starting with saline implants which you have had the past 15 years, experience and the literature available tell us that the saline implant can last about 15 years, though it is possible for them to last 20 years or more. Deflation can occur earlier, as early as 7 years, and we know... more

Peter E. Johnson, MD
Chicago Plastic Surgeon

There is no average "life" for breast implants. They can last your whole life.

To beauty advice, Hi! Several points: 1) The statistical chance of an implant leaking is 1 to 2% per year that it's been in your breast. So at 15 years, the risk of a leak is between 15% and 30%. So they can last a lot longer than that. But there is no such thing as an average. I have seen implants leak after one year (very rarely) and I have seen implants doing fine after 30 years. 2) There is absolutely nothing you NEED to do now, medically. 3) It sounds like you are not happy... more

George J. Beraka, MD
Manhattan Plastic Surgeon

Possible change to smooth implant

I would agree 10-15 years. Usually I don't advise exchange without overt evidence of volume change, unless other factors are present. In your case, ripples are an issue and could be likewise exaggerated by a textured implant whose shell is thicker and more readily seen or felt as a ripple. Exchange to smooth implants, either saline or gel, would likely provide benefit in the ripple regard. Yes, secondary procedures typically are easier than the initial implantation. Both in terms of... more

Michael A. Marschall, MD
Chicago Plastic Surgeon

Breast implant lifespan

Breast implants are not lifetime devices. I tell my patients that the average lifespan of a saline implant is 10 years. This means that some patients will have an earlier failure, and others may have an implant that lasts quite a bit longer. Now that gel implants are again an option you may wish to consider them for a replacement implant. A gell implant may solve your concers and is a longer lasting device in my experience.

Ann F. Reilley, MD
Baton Rouge Plastic Surgeon

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