Do Leaking Silicone Implants Cause Problems in Your Joints?

Good question June -
Implants were first introduced in 1962 and there have been over 250 types have been created. The Food and Drug Administration has been regulating medical devices in 1976. You are probably aware of the media spectacle regarding implants in the 1980’s when allegations that silicone gel implants could be linked to cancer, autoimmune and connective tissue disorders (such as lupus). Numerous lawsuits were filed and millions of dollars were paid to settle the resultant lawsuits.
Admist these problems, the FDA requested more stringent safety data. There was a lack of this safety data and the FDA banned the general use of gel implants for augmentation, with the exception of women who required breast reconstruction subsequent to breast cancer and mastectomy.
Fourteen years after the ban, in 2006, studies by the Mentor company in which 1007 women were followed for 3 years (with MRI results 1 and 2 years after implantation) and similar studies by Allergan (601 women were followed for 4 years) were deemed adequate to demonstrate safety and the FDA gave a qualified approval for silicone gel implant use. There were several other studies which also looked at the overall safety of silicone in the body.
Interestingly several studies discovered that the highest level of silicone exposure and silicone within the body came from diabetics. Silicone coated needles used for insulin injection over years likely create significantly higher silicone concentrations than implants.
Silicone is likely safe but here are things you should know.

The implants will not last forever. They are devices that may need to be replaced.
If the implants are removed the breasts will not return to their original shape and may look worse than before. (In other words scars and the changes from implant placement are permanent.)
When the implants are replaced there is a higher risk of complications compared to the first time.
Mammograms may be more difficult to read and may require additional views or other modalities (CT or MRI).
There are on-going studies regarding newer silicone implants. Mentor and Allergan are providing on-going follow-up of the initial women who participated in the core studies for 10 years and also provide a separate 10 year post-approval study on approximately 40,000 silicone implant patients and a control group of women with saline implants.
Silicone implants are difficult to detect rupture or leaks and MRI exams starting 3 years after implantation and every 2 years thereafter are recommended for surveillance.

As always, you should discuss these issues with a board certified plastic surgeon. Implants that are leaking should be removed however based on the science we have they are not likely contributing to your symptoms.
I hope this helps.

I think that there are two questions here that certainly need to be answered. The first is whether or not you had a test determine if your implant is indeed leaking. If a silicone implant is leaking, all surgeons as well as the FDA agree that it should be either removed or removed and replaced. Secondly, the question of the effect of joint pain and silicone should be answered. In the early 1990s claims are made that the relationship between silicone and joint pain and arthritis. This led to a large lawsuit and settlement which essentially turned out to be not related. According to the FDA report in 2006, has no correlation with your joint pain and whether or not you have a leaking implant.  Just remember to follow up on the possibility of your implant which may be leaking.

There is no evidence that even ruptured silicone implants cause any systemic disease.  Having said that, if your implants have been demonstrated to have ruptured, they should be removed.
Meet with a board certified plastic surgeon about your implants and with a rheumatologist about your joints!
Good Luck!

First. Leaking implants should be removed and replaced.
Second. The Institute of Medicine study and over 400 peer-reviewed medical studies showed no correlation between silicone implants and systemic disease.
Third. the new generation of silicone implants have been designed that even it there is a tear in the outer shell, the silicone inside should not leak out.
Do talk to your local Board Certified Plastic Surgeon for details and the best option for you...

You did not mention why you believe that your implant is leaking.  With the new form of breast implants produced after 2009 there is little chance of the implant gel material migrating since the gel is more cohesive than it was prior to this time.  Therefore it may be difficult to tell if it is ruptured since the implant tends to keep its original shape. The problem is non an emergency.  You would need some type of diagnostic study to determine if it was actually ruptured such as a  mammogram, MRI or ultrasound.  There has been shown in numerous studies no link between silicone gel implant and any autoimmune or connective tissue disorder. 

The anwers have said most of what needs to be said. There is no evidence that silicone implant causes any form of autoimmune diseases including joint pain. Teh FDA has established this as have 14 years of in depth study.

To date, silicone has not been proven to cause any systemic illness. There were reports of collagen vascular disorders being caused by silicone and it took 20 years to disprove those false allegation. Currently, there are reports in Europe about a certain form of lymphoma but this too has not been proven. There are ongoing investigations to study the association between silicone and lymphoma Europe but no direct correlation has been found. In regards to joint disorders, there has not been any proof of an association or correlation. If your implants are leaking, have them removed.

There is no evidence that silicone can cause any health problems
Silicone implants have been studied extensively and in 2006 the FDA came back and stated there is no evidence that silicone implants can cause any health problems.The institute if science an independent organization came to the same conclusion
We are exposed to silicon in our daily life, many devices ate covered with silicone,needles lubricated with silicone, IV tubing, even in canned food.
Most Rheumatologist will tell you there is no relationship.

What were the most researched and studied devices in the history of this country?
Heart valves? Artificial knees or hip joints? heart defibrillators?
No. No. and NO. Spurned by the Association of Trial Lawyers of America (now known as the American Association for Justice, [it would be funny -- if it was not so pathetically sad...]), the most heavily studied and scrutinized devices in the history of the USA's FDA have been breasts implants. Devices that while they bring comfort to millions do not save lives.
In the thousandS of studies performed in the USA and other countries, no peer reviewed, well-designed study has shown ANY connection between ruptured silicone gel filled breasts implants and autoimmune diseases, joint diseases, breast cancer etc.
Consider this: Diabetics who depend on Insulin injections to maintain their sugar levels have high levels of silicone in their blood because all syringes on the market are prelubricated with Silicone gel to allow movement of the piston within the syringe. Countless medical devices and catheters are silicone coated.
If you are going to NOT have silicone gel implants -- pick a valid reason.
This is NOT it.

Breast implants, saline or silicone, do not cause joint pains. Period. The FDA has established that the implants are innocuous. Your arthritis comes from something else. Check with your doctor about possible causes.