Thanks for the question. There are a lot of women seeking information regarding explantation and what else can or should be done. I will quote a letter from the American Society of Plastic Surgery to all of it's members regarding the issue of breast implant illness (bold face type added by me for emphasis)."There are many medical inaccuracies perpetuated by the internet. BII patients tend to believe that a total capsulectomy is necessary to remove all causative agents and they prefer it en bloc, oftentimes without having a full understanding of what size incision is necessary for en bloc. Rather than react, first discuss the reasons you would perform a total capsulectomy with any patient. Not all plastic surgeons routinely perform a capsulectomy with explant, but some do.If you wish to perform capsulectomy on a patient, it is important to explain that it is not always possible to remove all of the capsule. Sometimes a portion of the capsule must be left behind or is disintegrated with the use of electrocautery to prevent significant damage to muscle, rib or lung. Explain what size incision is necessary for an en bloc (as many may not be aware of how large an incision may be necessary). If they had an axillary approach or periareolar approach for breast implant placement, it must be explained to them that they cannot have the procedure done through those incisions. It is recommended to reinforce that there are increased surgical risks associated with en bloc capsulectomy which requires a complete dissection of all the tissues surrounding the breast implant and, that we do not have enough collective data to guarantee any improvement in their symptoms they have labelled Breast Implant Illness (BII)."The en bloc capsulectomy requires at least a 15 cm incision (6 inches). The only complications I have seen from removing implants are in patients that desire to have the scar tissue removed. Hemorrhage (bleeding), hematoma, and seroma (fluid collection under the skin) are all common after capsulectomy. Capsulectomy can also cause a very irregular breast shape if scar tissue tethers the breast tissue to an abnormal position on the chest wall (can create a very obvious indentation or fold in the skin). There is also a significantly higher chance of permanent loss of sensation with capsulectomy. I have never seen any of those complications in a patient where I removed the implant and left the scar tissue (capsule) behind. There is also no data or evidence that removing the scar tissue is any more beneficial than just removing the implants.If you perform a total capsulectomy you could repair the pectoralis muscle by suturing it down on the chest wall, but it can never be restored to its original position. The position on the chest wall where it would heal is basically identical to the position of the muscle underlying the breast tissue. Therefore there is no increased strength or benefit to repairing the muscle.I explain all of these things to my patients requesting implant removal, and almost without exception I encourage them to have the implants removed in my clinic under local anesthetic. If patients still want to have the scar tissue removed then I will still perform the surgery. I have even more information on my webpage link below (scroll 2/3 of the way down the webpage to see information regarding implant removal and breast implant illness).