Hair On The Brain

Ok, so you all know I’m slightly reality TV obsessed. I’ll admit it. I watch MTV’s Real World/Road Rules Challenge. I know exactly who Shauvon Torres is and exactly why she was the subject of interest last season: Her drunken hook up with Diem’s ex CT resulted in a fight between Adam and CT when Adam told Diem about the hookup and lead to both Adam and CT being kicked off the show. And I know why Shauvon was featured early this season: Shauvon was forced to leave the show after doing a belly flop during a competition, which resulted in a trip to the emergency room, where she where she was treated for what she thought was a burst breast implant. (It turned out to just be muscle and tissue damage.) Interesting facts about breast implant ruptures after the jump! ;)

According to New York City plastic and reconstructive surgeon Dr. Nina Naidu, it is very hard to rupture an implant with “normal” activity. (Can anything they do on these shows be considered “normal”?) “Ms. Torres [would have had to] hit the water with significant force to rupture the implant, though with an implant that is older than 10 years, it may take less force,” said Dr. Naidu.

Allergan, one of the main manufacturers of implants in the U.S., reports a deflation rate (including rupture) of 5% at three years, 7% at five years, and 10% at seven years. “The longer implants are in, the higher the risk of rupture, which seems to increase around the 7-10 year mark,” says Dr. Naidu. “We commonly tell patients that they may need to exchange their implants after about 10 years.”

Some other interesting facts about breast implant ruptures from Dr. Naidu?

• Generally, it takes a significant load to the chest, as from a seat belt during a car accident, to rupture an implant.
• If a woman has a saline implant, she’ll notice an immediate difference in the size of her breast with rupture.
• With a silicone implant rupture, there may be pain, mild discomfort, or no symptoms at all. The silicone doesn’t ooze or disperse throughout the body, so it may just sit in the “pocket” for some time before it’s noticed.
• The FDA currently recommends that women with silicone implants undergo screening with MRI’s three years after their initial surgery and then every two years after that to assess for rupture. Unfortunately, it can be difficult to persuade patients to do this, as insurance won’t cover the MRI and the cost can be a deterrent.
• The latest “gummy bear” implants are not liquid so there is much less chance of any kind of leakage. These kinds of implants are especially great for reconstruction patients following mastectomy, massive weight loss, and patients who have almost no native breast tissue.