What is Silent Rupture?

What is silent rupture? And how do I know if I have it?

For women with silicone breast implants, these are important questions to ask. Read on to learn more about this health situation and why Madison-based body recontouring specialist Dr. Thomas Bartell uses only saline implants to achieve beautiful, natural-looking results.

  • What is it?
  • Symptoms
  • Safety of Saline Implants
  • Breast Revision Surgery

Silent Rupture of Breast Implants

All breast implants have the possibility of tearing or becoming punctured. If a saline implant were to tear, the saline would seep out of the implant. Ruptures in saline implants are easy to detect because in about a day, the breast would look deflated. Although inconvenient, this rupture is harmless as the body would simply absorb the safe saline solution.

If a silicone implant were to tear, however, the thicker silicone gel often stays in the implant or in the scar tissue surrounding the implant, making it impossible to notice by sight. For some women, this leaking silicone causes no symptoms. It’s often referred to a “silent” rupture because it can go unnoticed for months or years. For this reason, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration recommends an MRI to check for silent rupture three years after having silicone implants placed, and every two years after that.

Symptoms of Silent Rupture

When a ruptured silicone implant does cause symptoms, it can cause breasts to change shape or size. Breasts can appear uneven or become painful, firm or swollen. Women may also experience numbness, tingling, burning or hard lumps in their breasts. Capsular contracture is another possible symptom.

With silent rupture, however, there are no symptoms to alert the woman that anything is wrong.

Safety of Saline Implants

From Dr. Thomas Bartell’s private, state-of-the-art surgery center to his hand-picked medical care team, patient safety is Dr. Bartell’s top concern. For this reason, Dr. Bartell chooses to use Mentor brand saline implants. Mentor breast implants deliver optimal aesthetic results with the safety of saline. Although extremely low levels of silicone may enter the body at some point from the silicone shell, this amount is less than what’s normally ingested daily from consumer products and does not pose a significant health risk.

Breast Revision Surgery with Dr. Bartell Madison Plastic Surgeon

Breast revision surgery can be performed to remove or replace old or ruptured implants. If you are experiencing ruptured implants or are interested in replacing silicone implants with saline ones, click here to schedule your free, no obligation consultation with Dr. Bartell. 

At a both virtual and in-office consultations, you’ll be able to ask Dr. Bartell any questions you might have about your current implants or the procedure. At in-office consults, you will be able to see before-and-after photos of real patients to get an idea of the kind of results Dr. Bartell can achieve for you.

About Dr. Bartell Madison Plastic Surgeon

Dr. Bartell is a board-certified plastic and reconstructive surgeon who offers breast revision surgery in Madison, Wisconsin. He has decades of experience in below-the-neck cosmetic surgery procedures. This focus on doing a few procedures exceptionally well has earned him the reputation of being one of the best plastic surgeons in Madison, Wisconsin. For peace of mind, schedule your free breast revision consultation today.

Dr. Bartell Aesthetic & Reconstructive Surgery

6418 Normandy Lane, Suite 210
Madison, WI 53719
United States (US)

Phone: (608) 271-0500
Fax: (608) 271-0502

What is Silent Rupture? brought to you by Dr. Thomas Bartell