Sientra Textured Breast Implants may be an advance in the continuing battle against breast implant capsular contracture.
The breast implant business is a funny one. Implants come and go and then come back again and then there’s something new that becomes old that is reconsidered or tweeked and then comes back into use and so it goes. This is why the skeptical Dr. Sowder (that would be me) is skeptical. But……….I think I might be onto something really, really new and improved in breast implant surgery. And it’s sort of a new implant shell and gel design.
But the thing that is really, really new is that Sientra, the manufacturer of these implants, is putting their money where their mouth resides. They are providing a two year warranty for their implants that develop a significant capsular contracture. Until now, capsular contracture was never covered by warranties.
I recently attended a presentation regarding these newish implants and asked the CEO of the company how Sientra can possibly offer a warranty for a problem that has plagued breast implants from day one and is considered almost an act of God by those of us who do everything in our power to prevent capsular contracture. 
Here is what may be different with implants manufactured by Sientra.
1. Sientra textured implants have a different surface configuration that seems to allow more integration into the surrounding breast meaning that it does not scream “foreign body!” quite as loudly as a smooth implant or implants with other types of texturing. It is the foreign body response that accounts for capsule formation.
2. The Sientra implant cohesive gel is really, really adherent to the implant shell. The shell cannot be torn off the gel. The gel just sticks to the shell, even with strong traction. So even if there is a tear or fracture in the shell, the shell and gel just hang together and the gel does not extrude outside the implant and possibly set up and inflammatory reaction leading to thickening or tightening of the implant capsule which is what causes capsular contracture.
3. Sientra only sells its breast implants to surgeons who are certified by the American Board of Plastic Surgery, a.k.a. Real Meal Deal Plastic Surgeons (me, for example). Sientra feels that those of us who have put in the years and years of training in plastic surgery do it better than those who have come to do cosmetic breast surgery via the back door. This is not the case with the other two manufacturers of breast implants in the United States.
Sooooo…………. I am now offering Sientra implants for breast augmentation. All the warranty paperwork is filled out by our office and every Sientra patient is automatically enrolled in the warranty program. And if I never see another capsular contracture in my life…………….
Thanks for reading. Oh, and Sientra doesn’t pay me to say nice things about them but they did feed me the other night at the dinner presentation but I only had one glass of wine and I skipped dessert. Dr. Lisa Lynn Sowder
@lisalynnsowder
