What Causes the Mold Found in Saline Implants?

No one knows for sure but the hypothesis is that it comes from the air when implants are placed or filled and therefore closed systems are recommended to decrease this potential source

To be honest, I have never encountered mold on or in an implant that has been removed from a patient, even ones that have been inside for over 20 years.  I am not sure how this would even happen, and I doubt the claims of women who say that they were made sick from such a thing.  This would imply that somehow they got mold into their system, or it was put into the implant itself.  Everyone uses sterile saline in the implants ( or should be), so it should not be able to grow any mold out of it or the implants themselves.  I always caution people to be careful with what they hear and/or read about diseases related to the implants.  There are so many myths out there that it can be hard to know what is real and what is not.

Having mold grow inside of saline implants is highly
unlikely and very rare. I have never
seen a case in my practice but it can happen.
There are two ways that saline is
put into implants. This first method is
an open fill system where sterile saline is poured in a sterile container on
the surgical field and is exposed to air.
It is then drawn up via a syringe and injected into the implants. Even though the solution and field are
sterile, it is the exposure to air that can lead to mold formation in the
implant. The second and more common
method is to use a close filling system where the saline goes directly from a
closed IV bottle into the implant through connected tubing. This method is more sterile since the saline
is not exposed to the air, highly minimizing the risk of mold formation. If the implant is placed correctly and using
sterile technique the risk of mold formation is extremely rare. Make sure that you have procedures completed
by a board certified plastic surgeon to further minimize this risk.