Are Sientra "gummy bear" implants less likely to cause complications, especially auto immune disorders?

All of the good studies that have been done on the question of autoimmune diseases and silicone implants have found that the incidence of these conditions in women without implants is the same as in women with them. Your choice of implant type should be based on what will give you the best result. All implant manufacturers in the U.S. use cohesive gel.

Hi Lara,No one would know the answer to your question for sure. Sorry.  You could always try saline, since these will correct asymmetries.  Sientra only
sells to BC plastic surgeons (by ABPS - The American Board of Plastic Surgery)
who are members of ASAPS (The American Society for Aesthetic Plastic
Surgery) and or a member of ASPS (The American Society of Plastic
Surgeons).Recently approved by the FDA,
Sientra (Silimed Corporation) silicone shaped implants are now available for
use in the United States. These implants have been used extensively in Europe
and South America for 33 years of safety, quality and patient satisfaction.
They have round implants (with or without texture), and also shaped implants
which can provide a nice "tear-drop" shape for women who want a very
natural and "athletic" look.  All the best, Dr. Joe

There are so many good points that are raised by your posting. I want to tackle them one by one, beginning from the end.Implants with highly cohesive gel were designed so that if the implant shell is damaged, the gel sticks to itself and doesn't travel from the site. They are a little stiffer (think Jell-O jigglers and regular Jell-O) than regular implants. They have a discrete shape. They should not leak. All implant manufacturers (Allergan, Mentor, and Sientra) have highly cohesive gel implants. There are differences, but not so great that it matters so much).Not all Sientra implants are highly cohesive. Nearly all gel implants sold today are somewhat cohesive. The impolants are very different from what we had in the 80"s.According to the most comprehensive studies to date, there is no direct link between gel implants and any auto immune disease. Though some people complain of new illness following breast augmentation, that incidence of disease is not different from those who have not had implants You can not prove something doesn't happen; only that it does. Unless your gastroenterologist says otherwise, I wouldn't thank that your risk of new auto immune disease is so high.Fat grafting, if done by a skilled plastic surgeon, works. I disagree that it would simply not keep. However, the best choice for you really depends on what you have and what you want.Best of luck

I would like to know where you heard or what you read that states many women with implants are getting diseases after surgery.  I ask this because in 29 years and thousands of patients with implants, this is just not something that I see.  All silicone implants on the market today from all three companies have been extensively studied in regards to any relationship with auto-immune diseases.  No correlation has been identified. Sientra implants are as safe as those made by Allergan and Mentor in regards to auto-immune disease.  No study shows that one manufacturer makes safer implants than another in regards to these issues.  There are, however, differences in rupture rates as well as rates of capsular contracture.You should discuss your concerns with several experienced plastic surgeons.  

I'll keep this short: There is NO (zero, ziltch, nada) evidence in the world body of literature to support an associative or causative link between breast implants (saline or silicone) and autoimmune disease. This has been the conclusion of over a dozen large reviews performed by the USFDA, NIH,  NHS, and their equivalents all over the world and reaffirmed a number of times in long term followup up these patients. The allegations of this were made in class action lawsuits against Dow Corning Corp. in the 1980's and never had evidence to support the causal relationships. The resulting investigations over nearly 3 decades has made breast implants the single most studied medical device in the world. The overwhelming evidence on the safety of the devices re. this issue is what led the United States FDA remove the restrictions in these devices in 2006.

Lara...Significant data now exists to show that there is no correlation between autoimmune diseases and ANY type of silicone implants.  However, one of the biggest drawbacks of silicone implants for some people is what I call 'worry factor'.  Despite the data there are many anecdotal stories of people who make a connection between the two.  Silicone implants were taken off the market years ago to be restudied and those studies confirmed that silicone implants are safe.  You could twist that to say that there must have been some sort of concern and the truth is that there was...but the truth is that there's no correlation.  So I can't tell you not to be 'worried'...but there's no data to support that.  You need to be comfortable with your choices.  You can get a good result with saline implants in most cases so if that makes you more comfortable- then go for it.  In most cases choosing saline should give you results that are good enough and not worth worrying for years...if indeed you're still worried!  Good Luck!

Dear Lara,As you have already correctly cited, there is no direct link between autoimmune disease and silicone gel.  However, if you have a pre-existing autoimmune condition, I would not recommend gel implants.  In fact, the trauma of any surgery alone could exacerbate the autoimmune response.  I would not rely on a lower leak or gel bleed rate in saving you from worsening your autoimmune status.  Good luck!

The literature does not support any evidence suggesting a link between implants and autoimmune disorders.  Good luck.

Thank you for your question!



There are multiple American and international studies that
show that there is no direct correlation between silicone breast implants and
autoimmune diseases. Certainly individuals, with or without breast implants, can develop autoimmune
diseases, but women with implants do not have a higher risk of developing them.





While Sientra implants are
highly cohesive, they would not have any particular advantage over the other
implant manufacturers in regards to autoimmune disease.