1. Quick Deflation of a Ruptured Saline Implant
One possible problem associated with saline breast implants is the risk of breast implant rupture. Usually, a woman with saline breast implants will notice this right away because the breast implant deflates rapidly. She will then notice a marked change in the size of her breast. Other symptoms associated with saline breast implant rupture include breast pain and breast rash. Note, however, that the saline itself doesn't cause any health risk to the woman. If a saline breast implant does rupture, a doctor can replace the ruptured implant with a new one during surgery.
2. A Silicone Leak Can Go Undetected
Unlike saline breast implant ruptures, silicone breast implant ruptures or leaks are harder to identify. In fact, a woman can have leaking breast implants for months or years and not even know. A woman may suspect that she has a leaking or ruptured silicone breast implant if she notices that one of her breasts appears smaller than it used to be, or if her breasts appear uneven in size. She may also experience breast pain, numbness, burning, tenderness or tingling with the ruptured or leaking implant. A leaking or ruptured silicone implant can also cause the breast itself to feel lumpy. The doctor might order a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) or an ultrasound to detect and confirm even a very small leak in a silicone breast implant. A woman can have a leaking or ruptured silicone breast implant replaced via surgery.
3. Capsular Contracture
One of the most common problems with breast implants is capsular contracture. When a woman has a breast implant, her body makes scar tissue that surrounds the implant itself. In some cases, this scar tissue can compress and squeeze the implant (capsular contracture). A woman might experience a very tight feeling in her breasts and breast pain if she has capsular contracture. The breasts themselves might feel very hard and look very round in an unnatural way. Furthermore, the woman may notice some breast asymmetry. Capsular contracture can happen with both silicone and saline implants, and surgery can help alleviate this problem.
4. Rippled Breasts
An implant shell encloses every breast implant. Over time, this implant shell can wrinkle or fold. This can cause a woman's breasts to feel rippled or wrinkly. She might feel these ripples and wrinkles or see them along the sides of her breasts. Doctors can address this problem with surgery. Note that rippling of the breasts occurs more frequently in women with saline breast implants.
5. Look for Signs of Infection
As with any surgery, including breast augmentation surgery, there is a risk of infection. Infections related to breast augmentation surgery tend to occur shortly after the surgery itself (usually within days or weeks). Some symptoms that a woman with new breast implants should look for to signify infection include breast redness, pain or a fever. If she experiences any of these symptoms, she should contact her surgeon at once for treatment.
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