REMOVAL OF PIP IMPLANTS

Procedure

Through a press release, the Colombian Academy of Aesthetic Reconstructive Plastic Surgery (Accpre) stated that all people who have PIP implants should go for the removal of their prostheses. "We consider that because this product has lost the characteristics of a safe medical device, it should be immediately removed from all human bodies in which it was implanted at the time," the document says. The pronouncement comes after the Ministry of Health and Social Protection gave the endorsement to pay for the removal of implants in women who have the medical recommendation to do so, and the replacement of prostheses only for patients who have undergone the procedure as part of a reconstructive treatment. According to Academy spokespersons, the documentation of each particular case must include a breast MRI. "Once the patient has undergone surgery to remove the prostheses, a culture and antibiogram of the liquid and/or seroma found intracapsularly and/or around the prosthesis should be performed," the experts recommend. Finally, the spokespersons explain that the surgeon should take intraoperative photographs and photographs of the removed prosthesis and send the material of the broken prosthesis to Invima or the Ministry of Health and Social Protection to examine whether the content of the prosthesis is industrial or medical. It should be noted that the controversy surrounding PIPs arose after they were found to contain a non- medical substance in their filler. Although French authorities are still conducting studies to find out if these fillers are related to the development of some type of cancer, several countries have already taken the decision to subsidize their withdrawal.