Hi! I am Dr Michael Szalay and today I am going to talk about revision surgery after breast implants.

1. D R . M I C H A E L S Z A L AY
BREAST IMPLANTS :
REVISION SURGERY

2. 10 YEAR STUDIES ON PATIENTS
Hi! I am Dr Michael Szalay and today I am going to talk about revision
surgery after breast implants.
Sometimes it is necessary to perform revision surgery after breast
implants. Helpful information about complications after breast implants
has been gathered by Allergan and Mentor, the 2 largest breast implant
manufacturers in the world. They have conducted 10 year studies on
patients who have had breast implants. Here are the 4 most common
reasons why revision surgery may be necessary:

3. 1. CAPSULAR HARDENING
This refers to hardening and contracture of the capsule around the breast
implant. It can result in pain, abnormal shape and abnormal position of
the implant. Capsular hardening rates have been listed by Allergan as 19%
at 10 years for their standard smooth and textured implants.
The use of polyurethane implants dramatically reduces the capsular
hardening rate to 1%.

4. 2. RUPTURE
Rupture refers to a tear or hole in the outer shell of the breast implant.
Various studies estimate the risk at about 1% per implant per year.
So, because each patient has 2 implants, the risk after 10 years may be
about 20%. There is no evidence that this rate is different for different
types of implants.

5. 3. IMPLANT MALPOSITION
This can refer to :
• the implant moving out of place eg dropping too far (“bottoming out”)
• the implant rotating if it is a teardrop shape eg it might turn on its side
and look abnormal
• the implant flipping over on itself if it is round, which also looks
abnormal
The Allergan study indicates an implant malposition rate of 7% for their
standard smooth and textured implants.
In my experience, polyurethane implants have a much lower malposition
rate of about 2%.

6. 4. BREAST SAGGINESS
This can occur for various reasons including ageing, breast feeding and
weight fluctuation. It can also occur due to the weight of the implant
stretching the breast tissue which occurs more commonly in the following
patients:
1. Those who have loose breasts to begin with.
2. Those who fail to properly support their breasts after implants.
3. Those who have large implants.
In my experience, breast stretching is less likely with polyurethane
implants as they hold their position better than standard smooth or

7. CONCLUSION
Whilst revision surgery may be necessary with any breast implant, the use
of polyurethane coated implants significantly reduces re-operation rates.

8. DR. MICHAEL SZALAY
PRECISION COSMETIC SURGERY
Phone: 07 3839 7222
Fax: 07 3839 6899
Email: michael@precisioncosmetic.com.au
Website: http://precisioncosmetic.com.au/
Address: Suite 280, Ground Level, St Andrews Place, 33
North Street, Spring Hill, Queensland, 4000