Breast Implant Illness Explained

Introduction to Breast Implant Illness

The two types of breast implants used today are saline and silicone implants. Interestingly, breast implants continue to become increasingly popular in the cosmetic industry. Within the last year alone, more than 375,000 females underwent breast augmentation surgery. Of these patients, nearly a quarter required implant augmentation for reconstructive surgery following breast cancer surgery. Over the past few years, there have been cases of symptoms following implants. Thus, breast implant illness (BII) refers to the array of symptoms that some women with breast implants have complained of, and for which no other cause has been identified.

Possible Symptoms

Aching joints and muscles

Adrenal imbalance

Anxiety, depression,
and panic attacks

Autoimmune symptoms

Cognitive dysfunction
(i.e. memory loss)

Continuing bacterial, viral,
and fungal infections

Early menopause

Easy bruising and slower healing

Fatigue

Fevers and night sweats

Frequent urination

Gallbladder problems

Gastrointestinal issues (i.e. acid reflux)

Hormonal imbalance

Inflammation

Insomnia and sleeping problems

Irritable Bowel Syndrome

Limb numbness

Liver and kidney dysfunction

Low libido

Lyme disease symptoms

Pain or burning around the implant

Pancreatitis

Parathyroid problems

Rapid or abnormal heart rhythms

Skin rashes and discoloration

Sudden food intolerance and allergies

Swollen lymph nodes

Symptoms of BIA-ALCL
(breast implant-associated
anaplastic large cell lymphoma)

Symptoms of EBV and fibromyalgia

Thyroid imbalance

Toxic shock symptoms

Unexplainable dehydration

Vertigo

Yeast infections, candida,
sinus, and UTI infections

Are Silicone Implants Causing Breast Implant Illness?

Evidently, there is no scientific support that silicone implants cause Breast Implant Illness. Currently, the FDA only supports the condition of scar tissue being formed due to silicone exposure. Additionally, this scar tissue irritates the breast and causes pain. This is because of silicone bleeding and can happen without any obvious breaks to the implant.

Furthermore, implant companies have tried to avoid this by making the solid silicone shell thicker. Regardless, it cannot be denied that patients with the above symptoms do exist. Interestingly, women who undergo implant removal have then been documented to have their symptoms improve! As such, breast implant illness cannot be ignored by the medical community.

Breast Implants with Dr. Laguna

If you are suffering from any of the above implant illness symptoms, then please book a free consultation with Dr Laguna to be enrolled into our implant illness program, and also educated on our comprehensive approach to treating Breast Implant Illness Syndrome. Dr. Laguna has performed hundreds of Breast Implant surgeries and his results speak for themselves!