The Functional Influence of Breast Implant Outer Shell Morphology on Bacterial Attachment and Growth

What is it about?

New classification of breast implant shells This paper studies the surface characteristics of 9 available breast implant outer shells. The outer shells of the implant (textured or smooth) have been linked to both better outcomes as well as medium to long term risks for patients. We studied the surface characteristics of area and roughness and found that there are 4 categories - high, intermediate, low and minimal. These categories correlate well to the ability of bacteria to attach and grow with the high and intermediate surface area/roughness implants showing the highest growth of 4 species of bacteria. We propose that this objective classification be adopted to help both patients and surgeons better understand and select implants based on both physical characteristics and functional outcomes.

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