Saline Filled Breast Implants

A saline breast implant is a sac (implant shell) made of silicone elastomer (rubber), which is surgically implanted under your chest tissues and/or muscle, and then filled with saline, a saltwater solution, through a valve.

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Breast implants have been used for breast augmentation for more than 40 years. Saline implants were long considered an inferior alternative to silicone gel-filled implants, which may look and feel more like a real breast than saline breast implants. Silicone implants were removed from the market by the FDA from 1992 to 2006 and saline (salt water) filled shells became an accepted alternative to silicone. Saline implants were approved by the FDA in 2000 and have always been available to women in the U.S. and worldwide.

Pros and Cons: Saline implants are more likely than silicone to cause visible rippling and are generally firmer to the touch and less natural in appearance than silicone gel breast implants. Saline implants are filled during surgery and allow the surgeon to make adjustments in the fill during surgery. Overfilling past recommended manufacturer’s guidelines can cause too much firmness. Not filling the implants sufficiently can cause the implant to have a fold which could lead to a failure of the implant know as crease fold failure. In the event of a rupture of a saline breast implant, saline is released and the empty implant can be removed and/or replaced.

Read about silicone gel breast implants