Re: My saline implant made me ill

[Guest guest]

Hi and welcome to our group,

I apologize that you have not had a response so far. Your story mirrors

that of many of the women who have come to our group in the past....and

there are thousands and thousands of women who are not part of this

group who live out among us and have suffered in the same way after

receiving implants. It is not a rare thing....it has happened to

hundreds of thousands of women over the past 5 decades! Their stories

have been told to the FDA and in the news media, but not too many

professionals in the medical field seem to even care.

Your symptoms are consistent with what we've heard women talking about.

And these symptoms can appear at any time during the breast implant

experience, from immediately after surgery (and this is usually a sudden

and drastic event in the health decline), to decades later when the

immune system has finally reached a breaking point.

Removing the implants correctly can be the vital puzzle piece that helps

us heal. You have found that to be the case so far, it appears. What I

want to suggest is that there are several things you might consider as

you continue on your healing journey. First, that it takes sometimes

years before women feel really good again. For me personally, it took

over 4 years to feel great again, and get over that dreadful feeling of

having been poisoned.

The other important consideration is the status of your scar tissue. Was

it removed at the time of explant? Was it fully and totally removed, or

only partially? There are doctors in the breast implant field who have

argued that a total capsule removal is necessary for the best chance to

properly heal and regain health, while others have suggested that the

capsule will dissolve in the body if it is left there. There is no

verifiable evidence for us to believe that this is so. IN fact, Dr.

Pierre Blais has written an article to argue that a scar tissue that it

left to sit in the body becomes a potential risk to the long term health

of the patient.

I'm pretty sure that it was your implant that did this to you as well,

based on the consistency of your symptoms to the other ladies

experiences. The good news is that yes, you can recover from this

poisoning. It takes time, some effort at detoxing, lifestyle changes to

include natural foods, hormone balancing, supplements to support

deficiences, and a good dose of patience and a desire to grow in

maturity through the process. I have found that while taking the time

to heal physically, I healed spiritually as well, and reached a higher

level of peace and contentment with my new body in the process. It was

truly liberating.

I wish you wellness....please continue to ask questions and keep us

posted on your concerns.

Hugs,

Patty

>

> Hi, I had saline implant put in 10 years ago but i had it removed in

march this year. I found myself getting terribly ill in august last year

when i discovered my implant had been leaking, I had a long list of

absolutely horrible sickness! i suffered unusual tension headaches which

lasted everyday for 7 months,vertigo, dizziness, lightheaded, balance

problem, visual problem, brain frog, confusion,concentration, memory,

speech, panic attack, anxiety attacks, pins and needles, hair loss,skin

problem on hands, feeling sick , chest pain, stomach pain, ibs,chronic

fatigue and doing simple things exhaust me. Its been just over a year

now and i am feeling a bit better now but still have dizziness and the

brain fog. The doctors wont listen they did blood tests and MRI but all

comes back fine. I'm pretty sure it was the implant that did all this to

me.

> Did anyone else have the same illnesses? and do you ever recover from

this poisoning?

>

> Peace and love to you all. x

>

[Guest guest]

>

> Hi, I had saline implant put in 10 years ago but i had it removed in march

this year. I found myself getting terribly ill in august last year when i

discovered my implant had been leaking, I had a long list of absolutely horrible

sickness! i suffered unusual tension headaches which lasted everyday for

7 months,vertigo, dizziness, lightheaded, balance problem, visual problem, brain

frog, confusion,concentration, memory, speech, panic attack, anxiety attacks,

pins and needles, hair loss,skin problem on hands, feeling sick , chest pain,

stomach pain, ibs,chronic fatigue and doing simple things exhaust me. Its been

just over a year now and i am feeling a bit better now but still have dizziness

and the brain fog. The doctors wont listen they did blood tests and MRI but all

comes back fine. I'm pretty sure it was the implant that did all this to me.

> Did anyone else have the same illnesses? and do you ever recover from this

poisoning?

>  

> Peace and love to you all. x

>

Hi.....I have been reading Patty's response, and I am still not clear why the

scar tissue capsule has to be removed. This capsule is opened up to take out

the implant, isn't it? Doesn't the surgeon flush the inside of the capsule to

get out any debris? It would be the same as if a surgeon did abdominal surgery

and flushed out the abdominal cavity before closing. If the implant is removed

there is no part of it left behind. The capsule is only scar tissue, just like

the scar tissue left at any surgical site. Wouldn't removing the scar tissue

capsule cause more damage than leaving it in? My implant is under my chest

muscle. If the capsule is removed, isn't there a risk of damage to the muscle,

and deformity? I am having a problem finding answeres to these questions. If

you could help that would be great.

[Guest guest]

Hi ,

Scar tissue is the layer of protective tissue that your body creates in

response to the presence of the implant. It can vary in thickness and

texture, from thin and paper-tissue like to thick and rubbery. It is

important when you have explant and are sick to get it all removed. The

reason is that the immune system can react to the presence of the scar

tissue in the same way that it did to the implants, because some of the

silicone degradation products, oils, and other " stuff " can remain

embedded in the tissue. The immune system will react to the same

substance whether it is attached to the implants or not.

Drainage refers to the bodily fluids that will flow into the pocket that

remains when the implants are removed. I did not have drains at

explant, and as a result, I was swollen and had very bad bruising for

several weeks. The issue of concern is that the fluids can contain junk

that is better outside of your body than remaining inside at the site of

explant.

Scar tissue generally does not show up on x-rays or scans. The only way

to really know if it is still there is to open up your chest and look.

You can safely make the assumption that if the operative report does not

specifically state that the doctor removed the anterior and posterior

capsules, they are still there. The operative report of your explant

procedure will specifically discuss the removal of the scar tissue if in

fact the doctor did it.

I agree with your wish ! I have wanted healing for so many women,

and it is something I continually pray about.

The peace from surrendering to God's ways in my life was so wonderful, I

wouldn't trade it for anything! I am glad to hear you've also been on

this spiritual journey of freedom. Now, just focus on good things, stay

hopeful, positive, and work toward healing...it will come in time, I'm

trusting God for all good things.

God bless,

Patty

> >

> > Hi, I had saline implant put in 10 years ago but i had it removed in

> march this year. I found myself getting terribly ill in august last

year

> when i discovered my implant had been leaking, I had a long list of

> absolutely horrible sickness! i suffered unusual tension headaches

which

> lasted everyday for 7 months,vertigo, dizziness, lightheaded, balance

> problem, visual problem, brain frog, confusion,concentra tion, memory,

> speech, panic attack, anxiety attacks, pins and needles, hair

loss,skin

> problem on hands, feeling sick , chest pain, stomach pain, ibs,chronic

> fatigue and doing simple things exhaust me. Its been just over a year

> now and i am feeling a bit better now but still have dizziness and the

> brain fog. The doctors wont listen they did blood tests and MRI but

all

> comes back fine. I'm pretty sure it was the implant that did all this

to

> me.

> > Did anyone else have the same illnesses? and do you ever recover

from

> this poisoning?

> >

> > Peace and love to you all. x

> >

>

[Guest guest]

,The answers are in Dr. Pierre Blais's report. Check out the other files at this site about retained scar tissue as well; there are quite a few. Please read them carefully! And read this one from Dr. Blais:http://runningrace.freeyellow.com/explantation/en_bloc.htmlBy: Dr. Pierre Blais, PhD

Contamination of the space between the capsule and the implants by

micro- organisms, silicone oils, degradation products and gel impurities

constitutes a major problem which potentates the risk of implants. Such

problems include inflammation, infection, deposition of mineral debris, as

well as certain autoimmune phenomena. These problems can be present when

implants are in situ (in the body) and are often attributable to the implant.

The logical expectation is that, upon removal of the implants, adverse

effects will cease. This is an unjustifiably optimistic view. It is well

documented from case histories that removal and or replacement of implants

without exhaustive debridement of the prosthetic site leads to failure and

post surgical complications.

Plastic surgery procedure lead to favor speed and immediate cosmetic

results. For these reasons, leaving or "reusing" tissue from an existing

capsule may seem more "gratifying". However, adverse effects resulting from

the practice are widespread but have not been well documented. Typically,

patients who require removal of faulty implants and undergo immediate re-

implantation in the same prosthetic site habitually relapse with the same

problem which motivated the previous surgery; the most common example is

exchange of implants and/or sectorizing or bisecting the capsule without

removing it completely.

Such patients rarely achieve a significant capsular correction and

habitually return for more similar surgery. A more illustrative situation is

that where patients do not receive replacement implants. They form the basis

of knowledge for evaluating the risks that arise from remaining capsules. An

example is described in a paper published in 1993 (Copeland, M., Kessel, A.,

Spiera, H., Hermann, G., Bleiweiss, I. J.; Systemic Inflammatory Disorder

Related To Fibrous Breast Capsules After Silicone Implant Removal; Plastic

and Reconstructive Surgery: 92 (6), 1179-1181, 1993): reported problems

derived primarily from immune phenomena and inflammatory syndromes with pain,

swelling, serologic abnormalities and alarming radiologic presentation.

Numerous similar cases have been noted amongst implant patients but

have not been the object of publications. Some are cited in FDA Reaction

Reports. Others appear in the US Pharmacopoeia Reporting Programs.

A residual capsule is not a stable entity. It may collapse upon

completion of surgery and remain asymptomatic for some time, however, it will

fill with extracellular fluid and remain as a fluid-filled space with added

blood and prosthetic debris. As the wall matures and the breast remodels to

accommodate the loss of the prostheses, the capsular tissue shrinks. Water as

well as electrolytes are expelled gradually from the pocket or else the

mixture is concentrated from leakage of water from the semi-permeable capsular

membrane wall.

In most cases, calcium salts precipitate during that stage and may render the

capsule visible as a radiodense and speckled zone in radiographic projections.

Prosthetic debris is also radiodense and may be imaged to further complicate

the presentation. The average size of the residual capsules after 6-12 months

is in the 2-7 cm range: most are compact, comparatively small and dense.

Surgical removal should present no difficulty for most patients if adequate

radiographic information is available.

Later stages of maturation include the thickening of the capsule wall,

sometimes reaching 0.5-1cm. Compression of the debris into a cluster of

nodules which actually become calcifies follows for some patients. A few

mimic malignancies. Others appear as small "prostheses" during mammographic

studies. They are alarming to oncologists and are habitually signaled for

further studies or biopsies by oncologic radiologists.

In light of the present knowledge and considering the probable content

of the residual closed capsules, an open or needle biopsy is not advisable.

The risks of releasing significant amounts of hazardous contamination and

possibly spreading infective entities outweighs the advantage of the

diagnostic. At any rate, such a capsule requires removal for mitigation of

symptoms and a more direct surgical approach appears more economical and less

risky.

In summary, a capsule with a dense fibro-collagenous wall behaves as a

bioreactor. Worse yet, it is fitted with a semi-permeable wall that may

periodically open to release its content to the breast. The probability of

finding the space colonized with atypical microorganisms is elevated and the

control of infective processes by classic pharmacologic approaches is

difficult if not impossible.

Such closed capsular spaces may be comparable to "artificial organs"

of unpredictable functions. Their behavior will depend on the content and the

age of the structure, its maturity and the history of the patient. There is a

high probability that these capsules will continue to evolve for many years,

adding more layers of fibro-collagenous tissue and possibly granulomatous

material. If bacterial entities are present within the capsule space, they

can culminate in large breast abscesses with

will resist conservative treatments.

Even with less active capsules containing mostly oily and calcitic

debris, the thickening of the wall leads eventually to solid "tumor-like

structures" and are, by themselves, alarming on auscultation and self

examination. At best, such structures are unique environments for protein

denaturation and aberrant biochemical reactions with unknown long term

consequences.

Pierre Blais, PhD

Innoval, 496 Westminster Ave., Ottawa, Ontario, Canada KeA 2V1

613.728-8688, Fax: 613.728-0687

Pierre Blais, PhD received his undergraduate and graduate degrees in physical-

organic polymer chemistry from McGill University in Montreal, Canada, and a

Postdoctorate Fellowship in biomaterials engineering at Case Western

University in Cleveland, Ohio. In 1976 he became one of the first scientists

to join the medical devices and radiological health program of the Department

of Health and Welfare in Canada. He left the department in 1989 as Senior

Scientific Advisor and formed Innoval Consultants, a firm engaged in the

design, testing and failure analysis of high risk medical systems. He has

authored over 250 publications on medical materials and their interactions

with living tissues.> >> > Hi, I had saline implant put in 10 years ago but i had it removed in march this year. I found myself getting terribly ill in august last year when i discovered my implant had been leaking, I had a long list of absolutely horrible sickness! i suffered unusual tension headaches which lasted everyday for 7 months,vertigo, dizziness, lightheaded, balance problem, visual problem, brain frog, confusion,concentration, memory, speech, panic attack, anxiety attacks, pins and needles, hair loss,skin problem on hands, feeling sick , chest pain, stomach pain, ibs,chronic fatigue and doing simple things exhaust me. Its been just over a year now and i am feeling a bit better now but still have dizziness and the brain fog. The doctors wont listen they did blood tests and MRI but all comes back fine. I'm pretty sure it was the implant that did all this to me. > > Did anyone else have the same illnesses? and do you ever recover from this poisoning?> > > > Peace and love to you all. x> >> Hi.....I have been reading Patty's response, and I am still not clear why the scar tissue capsule has to be removed. This capsule is opened up to take out the implant, isn't it? Doesn't the surgeon flush the inside of the capsule to get out any debris? It would be the same as if a surgeon did abdominal surgery and flushed out the abdominal cavity before closing. If the implant is removed there is no part of it left behind. The capsule is only scar tissue, just like the scar tissue left at any surgical site. Wouldn't removing the scar tissue capsule cause more damage than leaving it in? My implant is under my chest muscle. If the capsule is removed, isn't there a risk of damage to the muscle, and deformity? I am having a problem finding answeres to these questions. If you could help that would be great. >

[Guest guest]

,

These kinds of reports of how doctors treat their patients sends a

shudder up my spine and makes me so mad!

There is no excuse for this kind of insulting behavior at all.

These doctors should be reported and receive disciplinary action.

He is a worthless doctor. Totally worthless, if he can have many women

coming to them with the same complaints, and yet he refuses to believe

them. What good is he if he is only going to treat from his viewpoint

and not theirs? Worthless!!!!!!!!

The other one doesn't sound much better....and this is the very reason

that we urge women to go to those doctors we KNOW of that realy do care

and can do a proper explant!!!

Dr. Lu Feng in Cleveland OH

Dr. Kolb in Atlanta, GA

Dr. Huang in Denver CO

and

DR. Ed Melmed in Dallas TX (though you MUST discuss total capsulectomy

with him)

The only concern I have in your case is just what " Minimal " means to the

doctor who took yours out.

Minimal can mean different things to different doctors, and there may be

a point where minimal is still too much if you are sick.

I am doing very well, and my prayer is that you will heal also!

You are in a tough position, which I wish no woman to be in, and that is

not knowing if the scar tissue is keeping you from getting better. It

would be much better to have it all out and have the peace of knowing

you've done everything possible regarding the explant surgery. When it

comes to that scar tissue, the only peace you can really have is in

knowing it is all gone. It's a priceless peace to have. So, you may

have to have a second surgery, as some women have done, to remove that

scar tissue. It is your call.

I wish you well , and at this point, the best thing you can do is

to detox your body fully, and keep working at getting better through

natural therapies. You may be completely successful without that second

surgery. It's worth the effort to try!

Hugs,

Patty

> > >

> > > Hi, I had saline implant put in 10 years ago but i had it removed

in march this year. I found myself getting terribly ill in august last

year when i discovered my implant had been leaking, I had a long list of

absolutely horrible sickness! i suffered unusual tension headaches which

lasted everyday for 7 months,vertigo, dizziness, lightheaded, balance

problem, visual problem, brain frog, confusion,concentra tion, memory,

speech, panic attack, anxiety attacks, pins and needles, hair loss,skin

problem on hands, feeling sick , chest pain, stomach pain, ibs,chronic

fatigue and doing simple things exhaust me. Its been just over a year

now and i am feeling a bit better now but still have dizziness and the

brain fog. The doctors wont listen they did blood tests and MRI but all

comes back fine. I'm pretty sure it was the implant that did all this to

me.

> > > Did anyone else have the same illnesses? and do you ever recover

from this poisoning?

> > >

> > > Peace and love to you all. x

> > >

> > Hi.....I have been reading Patty's response, and I am still not

clear why the scar tissue capsule has to be removed. This capsule is

opened up to take out the implant, isn't it? Doesn't the surgeon flush

the inside of the capsule to get out any debris? It would be the same as

if a surgeon did abdominal surgery and flushed out the abdominal cavity

before closing. If the implant is removed there is no part of it left

behind. The capsule is only scar tissue, just like the scar tissue left

at any surgical site. Wouldn't removing the scar tissue capsule cause

more damage than leaving it in? My implant is under my chest muscle. If

the capsule is removed, isn't there a risk of damage to the muscle, and

deformity? I am having a problem finding answeres to these questions. If

you could help that would be great.

> >

>

[Guest guest]

,

I have heard nothing about this doctor, and I don't think he has been used by

any of us.

Please be sure to check the files for explant and take the questions with you

when you see him. Discuss fully this article by Dr. Blais about the retained

capsules and the other studies, so he knows you are informed and want the best

care.

I'm hoping he will be open to the need for the total capsulectomy!

Let us know,

Patty

> >> >

> >> > Hi, I had saline implant put in 10 years ago but i had it removed in

march this year. I found myself getting terribly ill in august last year when i

discovered my implant had been leaking, I had a long list of absolutely horrible

sickness! i suffered unusual tension headaches which lasted everyday for

7 months,vertigo, dizziness, lightheaded, balance problem, visual problem, brain

frog, confusion,concentra tion, memory, speech, panic attack, anxiety attacks,

pins and needles, hair loss,skin problem on hands, feeling sick , chest pain,

stomach pain, ibs,chronic fatigue and doing simple things exhaust me. Its been

just over a year now and i am feeling a bit better now but still have dizziness

and the brain fog. The doctors wont listen they did blood tests and MRI but all

comes back fine. I'm pretty sure it was the implant that did all this to me.

> >> > Did anyone else have the same illnesses? and do you ever recover from

this poisoning?

> >> >  

> >> > Peace and love to you all. x

> >> >

> >> Hi.....I have been reading Patty's response, and I am still not clear why

the scar tissue capsule has to be removed. This capsule is opened up to take out

the implant, isn't it? Doesn't the surgeon flush the inside of the capsule to

get out any debris? It would be the same as if a surgeon did abdominal surgery

and flushed out the abdominal cavity before closing. If the implant is removed

there is no part of it left behind. The capsule is only scar tissue, just like

the scar tissue left at any surgical site. Wouldn't removing the scar tissue

capsule cause more damage than leaving it in? My implant is under my chest

muscle. If the capsule is removed, isn't there a risk of damage to the muscle,

and deformity? I am having a problem finding answeres to these questions. If you

could help that would be great.

> >>

> >

>

[Guest guest]

,

We have some members on our support group from England, so I will write them and

have them help you through this. Let me know if you do not hear from them.

God bless you,

Patty

> >

> > > > >

> >

> > > > > Hi, I had saline implant put in 10 years ago

> > but i had it removed

> >

> > in march this year. I found myself getting terribly ill in

> > august last

> >

> > year when i discovered my implant had been leaking, I had a

> > long list of

> >

> > absolutely horrible sickness! i suffered unusual tension

> > headaches which

> >

> > lasted everyday for 7 months,vertigo, dizziness,

> > lightheaded, balance

> >

> > problem, visual problem, brain frog, confusion,concentra

> > tion, memory,

> >

> > speech, panic attack, anxiety attacks, pins and needles,

> > hair loss,skin

> >

> > problem on hands, feeling sick , chest pain, stomach pain,

> > ibs,chronic

> >

> > fatigue and doing simple things exhaust me. Its been just

> > over a year

> >

> > now and i am feeling a bit better now but still have

> > dizziness and the

> >

> > brain fog. The doctors wont listen they did blood tests and

> > MRI but all

> >

> > comes back fine. I'm pretty sure it was the implant

> > that did all this to

> >

> > me.

> >

> > > > > Did anyone else have the same illnesses? and

> > do you ever recover

> >

> > from this poisoning?

> >

> > > > >

> >

> > > > > Peace and love to you all. x

> >

> > > > >

> >

> > > > Hi.....I have been reading Patty's response,

> > and I am still not

> >

> > clear why the scar tissue capsule has to be removed. This

> > capsule is

> >

> > opened up to take out the implant, isn't it?

> > Doesn't the surgeon flush

> >

> > the inside of the capsule to get out any debris? It would

> > be the same as

> >

> > if a surgeon did abdominal surgery and flushed out the

> > abdominal cavity

> >

> > before closing. If the implant is removed there is no part

> > of it left

> >

> > behind. The capsule is only scar tissue, just like the scar

> > tissue left

> >

> > at any surgical site. Wouldn't removing the scar tissue

> > capsule cause

> >

> > more damage than leaving it in? My implant is under my

> > chest muscle. If

> >

> > the capsule is removed, isn't there a risk of damage to

> > the muscle, and

> >

> > deformity? I am having a problem finding answeres to these

> > questions. If

> >

> > you could help that would be great.

> >

> > > >

> >

> > >

> >

> >

> >

> >

> >

> >

> >

> >

> >

> >

> >

> >

> >

> >

> >

> >

> >

> >

> >

> >

> >

> >

> >

> >

> >

> >

> >

> >

> >

> >

> >

> >

>