Before and after bilateral breast revision in a 38-year-old woman with a deflated saline breast implant. She noticed that her right breast became suddenly smaller right before a Hawai’i vacation – which seems to be when it happens… While on vacation, she wore extra padding in the right cup of her swimsuit and arranged surgery when she was back at home with sufficient time for recovery.
A deflated saline breast implant is not harmful or an emergency – it obviously can create wardrobe issues, but removal of the deflated shell with or without replacement with a new implant can be done at any time in the future. Some patients present to our office many years after one implant deflates!
Saline is permeable in the body and will be absorbed by the body – whereas silicone gel is not absorbed by the body, should the implant shell break down. MRI is the best way to determine whether a silicone implant is intact. Clinical examination is usually all that is needed to detect a deflated (“ruptured”) saline implant.
She elected to have silicone gel implants placed instead of saline for her “new set”, as she liked the feel of silicone much better than saline. When given the option, nearly every patient chooses silicone gel implants over saline due to their much more natural feel, as the fresh “gummy bear” feel of silicone implants and their lower chance of creating ripples under the breast skin are their primary advantages.
The deflated right implant shell was removed, along with the intact left saline implant. New smooth round silicone gel implants were placed in the same space. She took a week off work and resumed full exercise at two weeks. Follow up photos are shown 3 months after surgery.
*All photos are actual patient photographs and are for illustrative purposes only. Individual results may vary.
