Dear Dr. Wall, I just caught the tail end of a news story on TV discussing a ban on silicone breast implants in France. Out of curiosity, what is the reason for this? Is there a ban on the silicone implants I currently have right now? Thanks.
There is no ban on your FDA-approved gel-filled breast implants placed here in our Shreveport cosmetic surgery practice. It’s a different story, however, for about 40,000 British women and another 30,000 French women who underwent breast augmentation with gel-filled implants made by Poly Implant Prothèse, a French implant manufacturer. Over 1,000 French women, and untold numbers of British women, have suffered implant rupture of Poly Implant Prothèse’s implants. With American-made implants, this wouldn’t be a problem—the problem in Europe is that the Poly Implant Prothèse implants were filled with industrial-grade silicone. Both France and British health officials are advising women with implants from Poly Implant Prothèse to have them removed as soon as possible. One woman has already died and untold thousands may become ill if their implants are not removed.
Again, these implants are not available in the USA, so women who had breast augmentation in the states would not have these implants. However, American women who flew to Europe in hopes of saving money on an augmentation may find their health compromised if they have PIP implants.
To your Health & Beauty,
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