I recently had my breast implants exchanged from saline to silicone because both of my saline implants had leaked out. I used a new surgeon as my old had retired. After my 2nd surgery my new surgeon told me that when he removed the implants he noticed that the valve plugs had been removed from both implants. Is this normal? If it caused the leaks should I try to be reimbursed for my 2nd surgery?
Saline implants have self sealing values and do not need plugs to hold the saline in the implant. The plugs were added to the design to minimize tissue ingrowth (which can participate in valve failure). The incidence of saline implant deflation is 1-2% per year; i.e. after 10 years there is a 10-20% chance of deflation. Deflation is a normally occurring event with saline implants. Implant manufacturers provide free replacement saline implants when they leak. Surgical fee, operating room, and anesthesia cost are usually not covered.
I hope this information is helpful to you.
Lawrence S. Glassman, MD, FACS
Its been shown that tissue can grow around those plugs and create symptoms. It was popular to remove the plugs to prevent that. Where was no harm to removing the plugs from what we were told by the manufacturer back then. It did not contribute to your implants failing.
Thank you for sharing your excellent question. Removal of the valves is unlikely to have caused any issues with your deflation as the implants had self-sealing characteristics.