Archive for the "Breast Implant Story" Category

17
Dec

Nearly 20 years ago, Susan had breast implants after a doctor recommended to reduce their cystic fibrosis. Their insurance paid for it, and few hazards were recognized. The breaking of the original saline implants after several years, and your doctor recommended its replacement by silicone implants, known for its durability. He got the implants and continued with his life.

About four years ago, began to get sick. It was sudden and remarkable: he became easily fatigued, and his lungs began to hurt. She began taking mega-doses of supplements to boost your immune system and recover for brief periods, but ultimately, the symptoms worsened.

After a year and a half of physical and emotional roller coaster, began making the connection between the pain of lung and breast implants. But getting silicone implants removed proved to be a more difficult proposition than I had imagined: surgeon after surgeon warned him that her breasts were deformed less than silicone implants replaced with saline implants.

The next six months were marked by equal measures of the inquiry and blind faith. Immediately after surgery, she began to put endless castor oil packs on her chest and back to remove the remaining toxins. She listened to meditation tapes in the bathtub and is expected to toxins such as black bodies floating outside his body. Essential oils were used to restore your energy levels. Your diet changes, as she began eating fish and meat, and eggs and earth to strengthen your body.

His recovery was quick – other women had told him that took over two years to return to normal, but Susan was seeing a substantial improvement after just a few months. We are confident that she was over the worst of all, moved and jumped to life again with both feet, taking in many great projects at once. He pushed too hard, and she began to get sick again – a painful experience that taught him a valuable lesson in the real cure.

After several months of increases, followed by the terrible accident, she received the message: if not stopped, you will die. “This is what I’ve learned: if you think that supplements are going to take the place of calm and sweetness, is wrong,” she says.

17
Dec

Women who have cosmetic breast implant surgery are three times more likely to commit suicide compared with women in the general population, suggests a new study of women in Sweden. The researchers said that surgeons must perform before surgery mental health screening and follow-up monitoring of patients receiving cosmetic breast implants.

The research is published in the August issue of the Annals of Plastic Surgery and was led by Dr. Loren Lipworth of the International Epidemiology Institute in Rockville, Maryland, and Vanderbilt University Medical Center in Tennessee, both in the U.S. . UU ..

Other studies have also reported rates of suicide among women with cosmetic breast implants. In this study Lipworth and colleagues did a more detailed long term follow up of an earlier study of a national sample of 3527 women in Sweden who had cosmetic breast implant surgery between 1965 and 1993.

Using data from death certificates and Swedish national health registers, they compared the number and causes of deaths among cosmetic breast implant cohort with the number expected among the same age group in the general Swedish female population.

Mean follow-up after surgery was 18.7 years (range was 0.1 RO 37.8 years). The results showed that:

* There were 175 deaths overall among women with breast implants compared with an expected 133.4 (standardized mortality ratio (SMR) was 1.3).
* Among women with implants there was a statistically significant three-fold higher rate of suicide (SMR 3.0, based on 24 deaths among implant recipients).
* The risk was almost seven times higher for women who received their breast implants when they were 45 years or more. (The average age at breast implant surgery was 32.)
* There was a similar increase in deaths from alcohol dependence or drugs in this group (SMR 3.1) which also showed an excess of deaths from accidents and injuries consistent with dependence and abuse.
* The risk of suicide was not apparent until 10 years after implantation surgery.
* After 10 years, however, suicide risk increased with time since surgery. Suicide risk was 4.5 times higher between 10 and 19 years later, and 6 times higher after 20 years.
* The death rate from breast cancer was higher among implant group compared with the general population.
* The overall cancer deaths were also close to expectation (SMR 1.1).
* The implant group indicated, however a high risk of death from lung cancer and chronic respiratory diseases.

Lipworth and colleagues wrote that “At least 38 deaths (22 per cent of all deaths) in this implant cohort were associated with suicide, psychological disorders and / or drug abuse / alcohol dependence.

The researchers concluded that:

“The excess deaths from suicides, drug and alcohol abuse and dependence, and other related causes suggests significant underlying psychiatric morbidity among these women.”

The increased mortality from these causes suggests that a “nontrivial proportion of women” who have breast augmentation surgery may already have, or develop later, long-term serious psychiatric problems, researchers said. Moreover, because only examined deaths, it is likely that the incidence of psychiatric disorders among women with cosmetic breast implants is much higher than the general population.

“These findings warrant increased screening, counseling, and perhaps postimplant monitoring of women seeking cosmetic breast implants,” suggested Lipworth and colleagues.

16
Oct

Eileen Swanson

Author: pooch

I was diagnosed with Stage II breast cancer in May 1988, after which I have had a modified radical mastectomy. In July 1989, doctors (including a cancer researcher) determined to be high risk of a second primary tumor in the other breast, and I made the decision to have a contralateral prophylactic mastectomy with implants. I opted for saline-filled, because then there is talk of some silicone gel-filled implants leak.

Two of Mentor saline reservoir good road valve implants were surgically implanted in my chest cavity, in July 1989. The right a deflated in the recovery room. My left side had difficulty healing and there’s a lot of swelling, including a swollen lymph node on the left side. I experienced a dizzy spell that required a scan of the brain. The results of the scan of the brain were normal, despite my “breasts” is extremely painful after the implant surgery.

In January 1990, the Dow right implant was replaced with a tissue expander, only saline implants. Is filled with saline weekly for a period of about 8 weeks, which was a very painful process that requires Valium and / or Tylenol with codeine. Then, a 3 surgery replaced both my right and left with Mentor implants Siltex saline implants, textured shell. It was tightened almost immediately, and again I have had difficulty healing. There was a lot of swelling and oozing. Increased the left side all the way up to my collarbone, and remained until the swollen implant saline was explanted. At one point the implant could be seen even through my wound.

In less than a month, suddenly became ill with symptoms of generalized joint and muscle pain, stomach cramps and diarrhea, overwhelming fatigue, hair loss, in the morning “rigidity” so severe I could barely get out of bed , And a sleep disorder that I learned later called “fragmented sleep.”

My plastic surgeon told me that my symptoms were similar to those of silicone gel implants for patients. She also told me, for the first time that the tanks of my saline implants were silicone. I decided I wanted implants, but by then I had different doctors at the military hospital (my husband was in the army), and they refused. I waited for six months until he finally was explanted in May 1991. Small incisions are used to deflate saline implants, and then the tanks withdrew. At the moment I have removed the implants, I could not even do stretching exercises, and as a result, the photograph of my business was almost at a standstill.

I had a brief respite, but the disease continued. The pain was relentless and sometimes so unbearable that I was in bed and disoriented. My doctors shrugged his shoulders. They had no idea what to do for me.

In 1993, was diagnosed with fibromyalgia and secure my rheumatologist that some medications for sleep, followed by increasing amounts of exercise easily manage the disease. Having been very active and athletic all my life, I was ecstatic.

But it did not work out that way. The medication made me so sleepy that even one quarter of the dose made me too sleepy to work the next day. I was forced to stop taking after a couple of weeks. Aerobic exercise is a distant memory. My rheumatologist has no suggestions for a different medication at the time.

In April 1994, I had extreme fatigue, pain, incredible, and was suffering from memory loss. I was forced to close my photography business. I realized that I was having difficulty remembering the multitude of details that require the photograph.

At some point in 1994, I learned that in order to ensure maximum removal of silicone, the scar tissue capsules must be removed. Unfortunately, mine were not. Since the capsules are under my muscles, I am told that to remove them now could do more harm than good. There is no guarantee that they can be removed completely intact. There is a possibility that doctors would have to scrape the capsules out of my ribs.

In 1997, duodenal ulcers were added to the myriad problems that already had. Therefore, most of the drugs (pharmaceuticals, OTC medicines, and alternatives) and food are now off limits. I tried to sleep medications 5, 6 for ulcers, and 7 for the pain. Now, I can only take Klonopin (chewed), for sleep or pain.

I have all the symptoms that are listed as associated with fibromyalgia in the ACR classification. Irritable bowel, Raynaud’s, cognitive dysfunction and, together with other symptoms I have described.

My marriage ended in divorce. I’m on disability and live with my mother in his attic bedroom. I have a friend who has just returned to work after they are equally bad for the implants. For its cost: $ 40,000 – $ 50,000 in treatments not covered by insurance. I have little hope of being able to do those things, and I have no money. Not expecting much from Dow. I have received very little mentor.

I had saline implants 5. It is supposed to be safe. I try to tell myself that maybe I would have become ill anyway, but I have no family history of such disease. And if not residual silicone that makes my chest burns constantly, then what?

Many of us pray that our government and the medical community finally recognize what makes us evil, and do something to help. I can not tell you what a relief it would be.

Most of my doctors are not yet in a position to help me, and not silicone recognize diseases. I have even been laughed at by a rheumatologist, because it suggests that the implants I had done wrong. Another doctor told me it was strictly a lawyer-driven, hysterical woman, greed issue. That, of course, is why I live on $ 560 a month, and why I gave my profession dream of living this way!

I just want to get well. I just want my life to stop being such a hell without end in sight.