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The legitimacy of breast implant illness (BII) has been a decades-long debate that has attracted a lot of attention from the medical community and concerned individuals. Many women have reported various symptoms they believe are directly linked to their breast implants, including chronic fatigue, fevers, joint pain, and brain fog.
Still, the medical community has been largely divided on this topic. Some plastic surgeons do not acknowledge the potential connection between implants and symptoms and others argue that an implant can trigger an inflammatory reaction in the body, causing illness.
No matter your belief on the subject, there is no way to deny the increased interest in understanding this widely misunderstood condition.
What Are the Symptoms of Breast Implant Illness?
Breast implant illness varies slightly between each woman, with most women experiencing a few of the following:
- Chronic fatigue
- Headaches
- Joint pain
- Muscle fatigue
- Brain fog/difficulties concentrating
- Depression
- Anxiety
- Dry mouth
- Hair loss
- Rashes
What Is the Role of Social Media in Breast Implant Illness Awareness?
In light of the recent surge of social media-driven influence regarding BII, a significant number of women are coming forward to raise awareness and document their symptoms.
Using social media platforms like Facebook, women are forming groups to share stories and experiences of their declining health, believed to have been caused by their implants. Healing by Nicole, for instance, is a Facebook support group with more than 86,000 members with the sole purpose of finding answers and raising awareness about breast implant illness.
More groups have been formed, with many women giving testaments to healing after having their implants surgically removed. They even provide support to women through the journey of removing the implants for optimal healing and health.
Such groups have been instrumental in educating and empowering members regarding breast implant safety to ensure individuals have accurate information to make informed health decisions.
Besides raising awareness, social media has allowed many support groups to expand their work in advocacy. We are seeing a more coordinated patient advocate network, focusing on constructively engaging with breast implant manufacturers and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to respond to implant-related health concerns.
Why Is There So Much Debate About Breast Implant Illness?
As much as there is evidence suggesting that breast implant illness has an autoimmune component, it’s also been argued that there isn’t enough research to treat it as a diagnosable condition.
Because of this, women need to be informed of all the potential risks and future implications before undergoing breast augmentation, especially for women with a personal or family history of autoimmunity.
While the progression from noticing patterns to research to practice is slow, there is still hope that there will be a diagnostic code in the near future that will solidify breast implant illness as a diagnosable condition.
What Are My Options if I Think I Have Breast Implant Illness?
It is important to remember that hundreds of thousands of women choose breast augmentation with implants every year, and the vast majority of those women never experience any complications with those implants.
If, however, you are experiencing any questionable symptoms — without a seemingly reasonable cause — and wish to remove your implants, contact Dr. Jennifer Boll. Most commonly, your breast implants will be removed (including the tissue capsule surrounding the implant), and a breast lift may be performed to restore a perky, youthful breast appearance.
Interested in Learning More?
Contact us at (480) 833-5200 or fill our online form to learn more about breast implant illness and make informed decisions on what’s best for your body.