Noelia Jimenez is 25 years old and in 2017 she decided to have a breast implant. He did it in a clinic in Málaga, with the support of family and friends, and in a completely normal context. “It seems like it’s like going to the barberAnd it’s not,” he explains. There he signed a good set of papers, namely, informed consent that the protocol should be initialized before intervention. However, and according to his version, he says the risk is always At least there were and now he understands why: “It is, in the end, a business.”
Noelia is an athlete, a 100 and 400 meter hurdler, and also asked the surgeon if she would have any performance problems. At that time he was not active due to an injury, but his intention, as it has been since then, was to resume his playing career. On the same lines the doctor confirmed that there would be no problem. So be free. With the passage of time, on the other hand, I verified that this was also not the case: “They cut it to place the prosthesis behind the muscle and in my case it is not possible to reconstruct it.”
“I’ve never had a small chest complex. I have 85. WasBut I started working with my image and many colleagues had surgery. They were all very happy and encouraged me. I did this to improve my physique”, she recalls. There was such an atmosphere of normalization, she says, that she was encouraged. “My husband was the most reticent”, she admits.
a good aesthetic result
Although he always had muscle trouble, the aesthetic result was desired. His chest was “beautiful”. After three years she started feeling very tired, drowsy, her sports performance fell, her face hurt, she was acne, tingling In the feet and hands, severe gastroenteritis… none of the symptoms were dangerous enough to stop her routine, but Noelia saw how her quality of life was declining. even a day vision loss for five minutes. Take diagnosis migraine.
“As usual something happened to me, I even stopped going to the doctor,” he says. One day her breast prosthesis started bothering her, but since she had trained a lot and a baby was born, she linked it to sports, to breastfeeding… a list of symptoms, among which are those that she Withstand.
Through social networks, she found that many other women were suffering from it and, especially in Latin America, there was a Very active community of influencers Share information and experiences. Behind an Instagram profile, with nearly 30,000 followers, and another on Facebook, is a Colombian journalist Diana Mara Castillo Trujillo Those who have now extended their informational work to Tiktok as well. She herself was suffering from breast implant disease and finally the prosthesis was removed in 2020.
“They don’t tell you that if the prosthesis opens up inside you, it can spread and move to other areas of your body… it’s not something harmless and in fact, since you get the implant , so your body protects itself by forming a capsule to ward them off,” Noelia says.
decision to investigate
His physical discomfort was so apparent that in September last year he opted to have his implants removed by a surgeon specializing in these interventions, who confirmed the diagnosis: Asian syndrome, her breasts were certainly beautiful, but his health was paying for it Too expensive and no, it was not a good decision.
“He told me the scars would be visible, but I told him I didn’t care. I wanted to take them off, they bothered me more,” he explains. To do so, she also had to stop breastfeeding, but the decision didn’t hold back. Recovery was tough, but very quick: “I felt better right away. It felt like my body thanked me.”
Noelia is now healthy and says she feels “happy”. “Earlier I couldn’t live, now I’m fine,” he concluded. Her interest in telling her story is informing other women in a similar situation. In fact, he posted a video on his network explaining his process, and over 500 people wrote in the same case.
Expectations and risks, key to patient information
According to Noelia, she didn’t get all the information about the risks of breast implants, so she didn’t decide to have surgery with a full understanding of the potential consequences.
Doctor Scar Junko is a plastic and aesthetic surgeon, and he leads a specialized team at the Border Clinic in Barcelona and explains that it is essential to “be transparent and not be untrue” with patients. He states that the subsequent consequences of intervention or dissatisfaction with the outcome can be due to a variety of reasons: a technique that is poorly indicated or not executed properly, external factors (such as drop in breast implants used or lack of postoperative recovery by patient), and above all, to intrinsic factor each patient (such as poor tissue response, poor healing, uncontrolled bleeding, infection, etc.).
“In the event of any complication, I consider it the primary duty of the surgeon to provide care and support to the patient, to the extent possible, using all means and knowledge to contribute to a satisfactory resolution. The place is where it is actually displayed. Surgeon worthy”, conclusion.
- What information should the patient receive in case of plastic or aesthetic surgery interventions?
- First of all, it is extremely important to analyze in detail the area of your body that you want to improve aesthetically; the quality of clothing with their possible limits; your general physical condition and psychologist, your medical and family history; And above all, understand what your expectations are so that we can clearly highlight real possibilities, Sometimes patients come for a consultation with a picture of someone they want to see in something and it It’s not like going to the barber Us to imitate a haircut. It is also necessary to provide information about the procedure, preparation, guidelines for recovery and, above all, an explanation of the potential risks and consequences that may appear. The success of a surgery lies not only in the fact that the surgery is performed correctly, but also that the patient is satisfied with the aesthetic result achieved.
- For what reasons would you refuse to operate on a patient?
- Any that have a high risk of failure in terms of patient satisfaction or even my dissatisfaction as a professional. I may consider surgery unforgivable because of this tissue boundaries.For inconsistency of what was requested with real expectations by the patient that can be achieved, if I see his transformation mental health (There are patients who will never be happy, even if the operation goes well), If you are a minor (except in specific cases), not being able to offer an ideal technique due to ignorance or lack of skill, or even for ethical reasons. many times Timely withdrawal is better to agree to an intervention you don’t see clearly
- Have you had breast implant intervention?
- yes of course. I have been in my career for almost 20 years and have had many breast implants but I have also replaced some and removed some. Patients should be explained that while an ear flap operation or a rhinoplasty may last forever, breast implants may they have to change They may break after a few years, even if you put the best on the market. And you also have to keep in mind that like any prosthesis (like a .) hip or knee) can cause problems due to rejection, infection etc.
- What cases of excavation do you see in your practice?
- There are different reasons. When an implant breaks, it is normal to replace it, but sometimes, due to the advanced age of the patient or due to other concerns and not being aware of it happening again, you may opt for it . permanently remove the implant, Another reason could be if you have frequent complications and do not get optimal results over time or do not feel satisfied with the results., My obligation is to explain that the breast that has implants does not remain the same when it is removed. Age doesn’t have to be the main reason: I changed them the other day for a 65-year-old woman who had them encapsulated and was very happy with her new implants.
- Do you sometimes recommend not intervening or delaying it?
- Even if he is throwing stones at my own roof, yes. In the case of a chest operation, for example, a patient must know that change in weight either pregnancy They usually change the result. A 35-year-old woman hoping to become a mother is more skilled at becoming a mother and then having a transplant. Or if someone is planning to lose weight, then he should also wait and get surgery later. Thus the results will be more permanent.
