Could I have developed a disease from my breast implants, i know its not uncommon, knowledge plz.?

Question

I have breast implants, I have had them for almost 7years now, well, I have deen diagnosed with fibromyalgia, a connective tissue disorder, I really have been thinking that my implants have been causing SERIOUS health issues, I have many other things that dr's cant fully diagnos but they know I have some bizzare health issues at my young age, any testing that is known any websites, that address the matter not from someone else personal medical problems but really concrete names, studies, stats, research etc...

I will se my doctor just didnt know if anyone out there on our big world wide web can give me insight i live in Detroit MI so if your from MI or anywhere else its all good

Answer 1

I am have alot of empathy for you as I have fibromyalgia myself.

Some women with breast implants have experienced these diseases and disorders: lupus, rheumatoid arthritis, polymyositis,
dermatomyositis, progressive systemic sclerosis or scleroderma,
fibromyalgia and chronic fatigue syndrome.

Some women with breast implants have experienced the diseases or disorders listed above, as well as a variety of signs and symptoms that could be related to the immune system or to the connective tissues of the body. However, these signs and symptoms are not considered a defined disease or disorder. These signs and symptoms include: pain and swelling of joints,
tightness,redness or swelling of the skin,swollen glands or lymph nodes, unusual or unexplained fatigue, swelling of the hands and feet, excessive hair loss, memory problems, headaches, and muscle weakness or burning.

Some doctors and women have thought that these signs and symptoms are part of a new disease which is related to silicone and have called the disease "human adjuvant disease," "silicone related syndrome," "atypical disease," or other names. The IOM report (Safety of Silicone Breast Implants. Institute of Medicine National Academy Press, Washington, D.C. 2000. {IOM Report}. Also available through IOM website at www.iom.edu. )

stated "The diagnosis of this condition could depend on the presence of a number of symptoms that are nonspecific and common in the general population. Thus, there does not appear to be even suggestive evidence of a novel [new] syndrome in women with breast implants." So, it is unclear at this time whether or not the signs and symptoms experienced by these women are related to their implants. In some cases, women have reported fewer symptoms after the implants were removed. In other cases, there was no change in signs and symptoms after the implants were removed.With the growing use of silicone in a variety of implants, the now rare occurrence of human adjuvant disease may become increasingly common.

Studies have shown that some women with silicone gel-filled breast implants produced antibodies to their own collagen (a connective tissue protein), but we do not know how often these antibodies occur in the general population, and there are no data that show these antibodies cause CTDs and related disorders. There are reports of women with implants who have a variety of autoantibodies. (Autoantibodies are antibodies that your body makes that accidentally target your own tissues.) However, the presence of these autoantibodies does not mean that a woman has an increased risk of actually developing a CTD or related disorder.

When considered together, these studies indicate that the risk of developing a typical or defined CTD or related disorder due to having a breast implant is low. However, these studies have not been large enough to resolve the question of whether or not breast implants slightly increase the risk of CTDs or related disorders. Researchers must study a large group of women without breast implants who are of similar age, health, and social status and who are followed for a long time (such as 10-20 years) before a relationship between breast implants and these diseases can conclusively be made.

There have been reports of women with fibromyalgia following breast implants, and a preliminary study conducted by FDA
(Brown, et al. Assn of SBI rupture and BI. Clin Rheumatol. 2002; 4(4);293-298.) found an association between self-reported fibromyalgia and extracapsular rupture diagnosed by MRI. However, this association has not been repeated in a similar study based on a large group of Danish women (Holmich, et al. Self-reported diseases and symptoms by rupture status among unselected Danish women with cosmetic silicone breast implants. Plast Recon Surg. 2003; 111(2):723-732.)

The IOM report indicates that breast cancer is no more common in women with breast implants than those without breast implants. While not conclusive, cancer rates have been reported to be slightly higher for some types of cancers. Cancers rates that have been higher in more than one study are lung and vulva. Because these cancers may be related to other factors that were not examined in these studies (such as smoking) these studies are not conclusive.

More information on cancer and breast implants is available at the National Cancer Institute website at:

* http://www.nci.nih.gov/newscenter/silicone-othercancers
* http://www.nci.nih.gov/newscenter/silicone-mortality
* http://www.nci.nih.gov/newscenter/siliconebreast.
.
Since 1964, more than 30 cases have been described of connective tissue disease developing in patients who have previously undergone cosmetic surgery using implantations of paraffin, processed petroleum or silicone. The majority of these reports came from Japan (1) when techniques of implantation were crude. More recently, four cases were reported from Australia (2) following augmentation mammoplasty with silicone gel-filled elastomer envelope-type prostheses.

Silicone may also provoke an autoimmune response by conversion to silica, a substance known to exert profound effects on the immune system and to be associated with an increase prevalence of progressive systemic sclerosis
.
(sources:Pernis B. Paronetto F. Adjuvant effect of silicon (tridymite) on antibody production. Proc Soc Exp Biol Med 1962; 110:390-93 and Rodnam GP, Benedek TG, Medsger TA Jr, Cammarata RJ, The association of PSS (scleroderma) with coal-miner’s pneumoconiosis and other forms of silicosis. Ann Intern Med 1967; 66:323-34 )

A variety of auto-immune diseases has been described in association with cosmetic surgery, including progressive systemic sclerosis, systemic lupus erythematosus, rheumatoid arthritis, thyroiditis, Sjogren’s syndrome and morphoea (1), and is some cases there has been dramatic improvement in symptoms following bilateral mastectomy.

source:Pamela G. Dowd at http://yukonmom47.tripod.com/id36.html

Answer 2

This is highly unlikely. As far as I am aware there is no evidence linking fibromyalgia or other medical conditions with breast augmentation.
In fact the class action against Dow Corning (makers of silicon breast implants) is a big hype and not really based on sound evidence. Yes, silicon in some cases may have leaked out of the implant into the body, but the evidence that this has caused long term health problems is certainly not conclusive.

Answer 3

Yes, I believe that this condition may have been caused by your augmentation and there is a class action suit against Dow & Mentor because of the many diseases and side effects of implant surgery; however, it is very difficult to prove that this was
indeed the cause of your condition! I would contact an attorney and see if the manufacturer would pay for removal or replacement and then find a very good reconstructive surgeon for an expert opinion re: what you should do...

Answer 4

I can't give you a site.
But, I do know that in the past implants have caused women to have autoimmune diseases.

Not sure if you can prove it or not.

I was diagnoises with Fibromyalgia at the age of 42. I didn't have implants. But, I can relate to your pains.

Try checking in with the National Institute of Health

Answer 5

check this website out, there are tv specials about that all the time, Ive never had breast implants but I have heard of it, just check out the website, and goodluck I hope you feel better.

http://www.siliconeholocaust.org/

also check into Human Adjuvant Disease just do a google search.

Answer 6

We can't help you. U help urself by going to a Doc.
http://www.fda.gov/fdac/features/2004/504_implants.html

Answer 7

Well, your effects seems abnormal, if you haven't asked your doctor yet you should do it right away.