Re: Re: Kim dear; returning mail to you

[Guest guest]

Kim,

En bloc seems to be most important for women with silicone gel implants that have ruptured.....the goal being to prevent any of the silicone gel from escaping into the chest cavity.

Saline implants can most likely be safely drained first--you definitely don't want the saline spilling into your chest if it is filled with bacteria and fungus--but the only thing you need to really make sure of with saline implant removal is that a total capsulectomy will be done. This is where they take out all the scar tissue--every bit of it. (If you have an en bloc removal, you will have a total capsulectomy as a part of the procedure, by design. But you can have a total capsulectomy done without having the implants removed en bloc.) It seems that the total capsulectomy is where plastic surgeons can get really sloppy, though, and try to get away with only taking the implant out.

If you can only be assured of a total capsulectomy by pushing for en bloc removal, then so be it. I had my saline implants removed en bloc, but in hindsight, it probably wasn't necessary, as I only had them 9 months total. I was left with much larger scars.

Let us know how things are going....you have some excellent plastic surgeons to choose from there in Florida. I would think that some of them would be able to help you....did you check our list of surgeons who can remove implant properly?

Patty

----- Original Message -----

From: kim

Sent: Sunday, August 31, 2003 5:02 PM

Subject: Re: Kim dear; returning mail to you

,I am in Sarasota. The price my ps gave me for her in office procedure that would not include en bloc removal was so sweet, if only it would be sufficient. Based on what i am learning here and researching on my own, I am going to talk with her further about the en bloc. Her comment when i first brought it up was that we do not have "good science" to really know if en bloc is required. She felt more strongly that en bloc was necessary if you had silicone. But seemed a bit more lax on saline. I will be speaking with her further on the subject on Tuesday, which was supposed to be my explant date...but i may end up holding out for the en bloc in which case i would have to borrow money from my mom. (which i absolutely hate to do)The ps is willing to help me out to the point of taking payments for her services but of course the hospital and the anesthesiologist will not. in any case, thank you for all your support.~Kim