Mammary implants: laboratory simulation of recreational diving conditions

To ascertain whether mammary implants are prone to changes in conformation or structure if they are submitted to recreational dives, eight mammary implants were submitted to 40 simulated dives to imitate an average recreational diving schedule. Matching implants were used as a control group. Photographs were taken before and after completion of the protocol. All implants were observed for changes in volume and checked for integrity. Variations in density were evaluated using a Tc scan. No changes in volume occurred after each dive. None of the implants showed ruptures, and Tc scanning failed to reveal any differences in density between tested and control implants. Cohesive-gel implants submitted to the simulated dives showed some morphological alterations. This study indicates that the mammary implants tested could be implanted in a sports diver, but raises concern about whether the increased exposure to stress could negatively affect their durability. (C) 2002 The British Association of Plastic Surgeons.