What is it associated with? What causes the disease?

• It is mainly related to materials such as silicone breast implants, and even vaccines, but it can also be related to other medical devices and therapeutic products that are normally considered safe. 

What are the risk factors?

• Genetic factors, family history of inflammatory and autoimmune diseases.

What are the symptoms of the condition?

• Body pain, muscle pain, muscle weakness
• Joint pain
• Chronic fatigue, sleep disturbances, memory loss
• Dry mouth and eyes

 What causes the problem?

• It is caused by the presence of a foreign material in the body that induces the production of autoantibodies, leading to signs and symptoms similar to autoimmune diseases.

What is the relationship between silicone implants and rheumatic diseases and chronic pain?

• If symptoms appeared after the placement of breast implants, a rheumatologist should evaluate whether the disease was caused by the breast implant.

As it is a recent study, is the diagnosis of the disease already certainly known?

• The diagnosis of this syndrome consists of the presence of these signs and symptoms that appeared after the placement of the breast implant and silicone or the use of any other medical device or related treatment.

Is it already possible to point out a treatment for silicone-related disease?

• Treatment with medications can help control symptoms, but the definitive treatment consists of en bloc removal of the silicone implant with its entire intact capsule.

Are all women predisposed to silicone-related disease?

• Having a silicone implant is already a risk, regardless of whether the implant is mammary or in another part of the body. People with personal and family history of autoimmune (immune system) diseases have an increased risk.

What tests are necessary before undergoing silicone implant surgery?

• There is currently no specific test that indicates an increased risk of developing a silicone-related disease.  The routine examinations requested by many surgeons for those undergoing mammoplasty with silicone usually consist of breast examinations (mammography and ultrasound), blood tests (complete blood count, coagulogram, renal function), pregnancy test, urine test. There are scientific studies proposing the collection of specific tests to assess inflammatory activity and the presence of autoantibodies, but without proven benefits to date. And we must remember that each patient may have a different medical history and may require specific tests and even evaluation by another specialist.

What precautions should women take before opting for silicone implants?

• Verify that the surgeon is indeed a specialist in Plastic Surgery, be informed about all the risks of the procedure, understand where the scars will be, know the post-operative recovery, and especially, be well informed that, to date, there is NO eternal breast implant. ALL silicone implants need to be replaced.

What are the contraindications for silicone implants?

• There is no formal absolute contraindication, and each case must be studied, but there is a relative contraindication in patients who already have autoimmune and inflammatory diseases, especially in those patients with difficult disease control.

Is there a treatment for the syndrome?

• Treatment with medications can help control symptoms, but the definitive treatment consists of en bloc removal of the silicone implant with its entire intact capsule, and even then, the symptoms may not regress or even improve.

Any final considerations?

• Although it is a risk related to breast implants, it is a rare syndrome.