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Breast implants get safer, less likely to be rejected by the
body
Is breast implant a good thing? The procedure may have its
advocates the world over, but there enough people who are against it, given
common complaints such as infection, pain and discomfort. But those in favour
of it, may have something to cheer as scientists have developed implants that
will not be rejected by the body.
Scientists have discovered a way to enhance the surface of
silicone breast implants to make them less likely to be rejected by the body.
The research team, from the University of Manchester in the
UK, says that one in five people with breast implants grow scar tissue that
calls for more surgery due to pain and deformity.
"Some of the surfaces seen on implants today were
designed originally in the 60s and 70s and therefore there is an unmet need for
delivering the next generation of biomimetic breast implant surfaces,"
says lead author Dr Ardeshir Bayat, of M-U's Institute of Inflammation and
Repair.
This condition is called capsular contracture and it occurs
when the body rejects a foreign object.
Springboarding on previous research suggesting that scar
tissue is less likely to result from implants with textured surfaces, the
research team created a surface similar to what the body is used to, such as
the basal layer of the skin.
This provides a better environment for cells to grow on,
according to the study.
"Importantly, the micro environment created by the
features of a breast implant is critical for breast tissue cells to adhere to
that surface and grow on," says Dr Ardeshir Bayat.
He compared the surface of conventional implants to the face
of a smooth cliff, noting that the cells need a terrain of their own dimension
to properly interact with.
What's more, the enhanced surface could help reduce chances
of inflammation, which can result in scarring.
The research team tested their new implants over the course
of a week -- the period post-operation where patients are most likely to develop
complications -- and concluded that cells reacted peacefully to the new
surface.
The researchers acknowledge that more work remains to be
done before they will be ready to appear on the market, although they predict
that when they are they won't be short of demand.
Nearly 400,000 cosmetic breast augmentations and
reconstructions occur in the US alone each year, and according to the
researchers, the number is growing.
Their paper was published in the journal Biomaterials.
Options for breast enhancement using the body's own stem
cells exist, yet a recent report published in the journal Plastic and
Reconstructive Surgery says the claims to that and other such cosmetic
procedures using stem cells are unsubstiantiated.
News Credit : http://www.hindustantimes.com/wellness/
