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Poly Implant Prothese: Breast Implants Recalled Over Gel Used
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by Yuliya Talmazan | April 1, 2010 at 01:55 pm
8650 views | 0 Recommendations | 3 comments
Breast Implant Recall
Breast implants using unauthorized silicone gel are being recalled by French health authorities. French manufacturer Poly Implant Prothese (PIP) has allegedly misreported the type of gel it has used. It has not been established yet that the form of silicon used is actually harmful. The British Association of Aesthetic Plastic Surgeons (BAAPS) says there is no evidence to suggest that the gel from the implants can "leak into the body." But, women who might be affected are encouraged to contact their breast implant surgeons. The sale of the implants has also been banned by French officials.
The company's website is currently down. But, BAAPS reports that Poly Implant Prothese is going into liquidation. The Association quotes its former President Douglas McGeorge saying that Poly Implant Prothese implants were popular with commercial chains because they were a 'cheaper' option. He says there have been questions about the safety and efficacy of these implants in the past. It is also reported that the French Court has ordered the company to close for making implants fraudulently.
Yahoo News reports that up to 35,000 - 45,000 women could be affected by the recall. Poly Implant Prothese allegedly ships its products to 66 countries.
It is not clear if Poly Implant Prothese will compensate the patients who purchased fraudulent implants. It is also not clear if the company will offer replacement implants that will necessitate another surgery.
In 2000, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) found problems with the production of PIP implants in France.
Moreover, a petition has been launched to take PIP breast implants off the market.
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Most RecentMost Recommended Comments (3)
at 19:29 on April 4th, 2010
Could I have the full contact details of this company - Poly Implant Prothese (PIP) please? I appreciate having the telephone and email address of the contact person for this recall of their products please. Many thanks.
at 07:04 on April 21st, 2010
I recently had breast implants and used prothesis by this company. My surgeon gave me a patient identification card which has refeence numbers for my prothesis. Is it possible to identify with these numbers if mine are deffective?Please let me know, thanks
at 16:59 on April 23rd, 2010
All of the breat implants were made from this questionable silicone, but just remember, double the rupture rate isn't such a terrible thing, as the rate is already low. Another consideration is that people often went with these as they were cheaper, indicating that a lot more working-class patients opted for them, and as such, they would have been more likely to be doing some such manual work that caused higher risks for rupturing to occur. Also, women from lower socio-economic backgrounds are exponentially more likely to be the victim of some form of physical assault, so there's another possibility for the increase in rupturing. My point is, there are too many extraneous influences to completely attribute this 'doubling' of the rupture rate to manufacturing alone. So just consider your implants as being a little more fragile than the horrible thick outer layered versions, and enjoy the fact that they look natural, whereas the others just don't. I have PIP implants, and will only see this media beat up as a warning to be even more gentle and protective of my chest. Don't forget, these implants had undertaken simulated wear in normal conditions and passed the 50 year mark with no rupturing. As the saying goes, don't believe the hype, as it's rarely as bad as the media would like you to believe.