BREAST RECONSTRUCTION: YOUR CHOICE
  • Home
  • Blog
  • Mastectomy
  • Going Flat
  • Reconstruction Basics
    • The Breast Reconstruction Guidebook
    • Timing your breast reconstruction
    • Tissue Expanders
    • Breast Implants
    • Autologous Tissue Flaps
    • Fat Grafting
    • Final Touches
    • The Decision Roadmap
    • Prep & Recovery
  • Finding the Right Plastic Surgeon
    • Choosing a Surgeon
    • Surgeons Who Perform Perforator Flap Reconstruction
  • Hereditary Breast Cancer
  • Insurance Issues
  • Breast Cancer Facts
  • Links
  • FAQs
  • Information for Surgeons
  • Contact
  • Media
    • Breast Reconstruction Facts
    • About the Author

9/4/2016

Breast reconstruction with implants: Reducing the Risk of Infection 

0 Comments

Read Now
 
Rebuilding breasts after mastectomy can be done with your own fatty tissue, but most often, about 80% of the time, it’s done with breast implants.

Although breast implants aren’t permanent, and they don’t feel as natural as your own tissue, they do have advantages over reconstruction with autologous tissue flaps: surgery is less invasive and shorter, and recovery is easier.

One common problem with any prosthetic device placed in the body, including breast implants, is infection. Not all women with implants develop infection, but many do. Some implant-related infections are more easily treated than others. In all cases, antibiotics—sometimes prolonged use—are required. Depending on the extent and  severity of the infection and its response to treatment, debriding the wound and other actions may be necessary, including hospitalization, additional surgery, and removing the implants--additional surgery to replace the implants isn’t done until the infection is healed. Women who have repeated implant-related infections sometimes do better when they convert to tissue flap reconstruction.

Drs. Adrian Ooi (Singapore General Hospital) and David Song (University of Chicago Medicine and Biological Sciences) recently published a summary of the newest literature on infections related to breast reconstruction with implants. Based on their analysis, they identified conditions that put women at most risk for infections after breast implant reconstruction, and recommended actions:
  • Smoking (no smoking at least 2 weeks before reconstructive surgery)
  • Hypertension (control with medication before surgery)
  • Diabetes mellitus (control blood sugar levels before surgery)
  • Compromised immune system (consider tissue flap unless white count can be stabilized)
  • Larger breast size (recommend tissue flap or reduced breast size)
The authors recommend tissue flap over breast implant reconstruction for women who:
  • are older than age 50
  • are obese (BMI >30)
  • have had prior radiation
  • have adjuvant chemotherapy
They also recommend a separate, pre-mastectomy procedure to remove axillary lymph nodes, if necessary (rather than dissecting the nodes at the time of mastectomy). For patients who are at high risk for infection, they also recommend delayed, rather than immediate breast reconstruction, which tends to result in higher rates of infection.

------------------------

Resource: Adrian SH Ooi and David H Song. “Reducing infection risk in implant-based breast-reconstruction surgery: challenges and solutions.” Breast Cancer-Targets and Therapy. September 1, 2016.
 
  
 


 
 
 
 
 

Share

0 Comments

Your comment will be posted after it is approved.


Leave a Reply.

Details

    Archives

    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    October 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015
    June 2015
    May 2015
    April 2015
    March 2015
    February 2015
    January 2015
    December 2014
    November 2014
    October 2014
    September 2014
    August 2014
    July 2014
    June 2014
    May 2014
    January 2014
    August 2013
    July 2013
    June 2013

    Categories

    All
    Expanders/implants
    Fat
    Fat Grafting
    Genetic Issues
    Hereditary Risk
    Life After Reconstruction
    Lumpectomy
    Mastectomy
    Nipple/tattoo
    Other
    Preventive Mastectomy
    Radiation Therapy
    Recovery
    Surgeons
    Surgery
    Tissue Flap Reconstruction
    Tissue Flaps
    Traveling For Reconstruction

    RSS Feed

The information on this website is provided for educational and informational purposes only and should not be interpreted as medical advice.
© 2011-2017 Kathy Steligo

  • Home
  • Blog
  • Mastectomy
  • Going Flat
  • Reconstruction Basics
    • The Breast Reconstruction Guidebook
    • Timing your breast reconstruction
    • Tissue Expanders
    • Breast Implants
    • Autologous Tissue Flaps
    • Fat Grafting
    • Final Touches
    • The Decision Roadmap
    • Prep & Recovery
  • Finding the Right Plastic Surgeon
    • Choosing a Surgeon
    • Surgeons Who Perform Perforator Flap Reconstruction
  • Hereditary Breast Cancer
  • Insurance Issues
  • Breast Cancer Facts
  • Links
  • FAQs
  • Information for Surgeons
  • Contact
  • Media
    • Breast Reconstruction Facts
    • About the Author
✕