Internet Breast Implant Registry Answers Demands of FDA Silicone Gel Breast Implant Panel
The FDA Plastic Surgery subcommittee has required establishment of a registry for breast implants. A new internet based registry provides patients and surgeons access to critical information regarding saline and silicone gel implants. - New Breast Implant Registry Reassures Women, Helps Surgeons.
Chicago, IL (PRWEB) May 14, 2005 -- Plastic surgeon Robert Frank has examined
hundreds of women who have had breast augmentation or implant breast
reconstruction. And he is amazed -- his patients have remarkably little
information about the details of their past surgeries. One young woman recently
visited Dr. Frank for a regular examination swearing she had saline implants ten
years earlier. Upon operation, Dr. Frank discovered that the implants were not
in fact saline, but ruptured gel implants that lengthened the time and severity
of the surgery and limited the ultimate cosmetic result.
Shaken by this
experience and others like it, Dr. Frank decided to start an Internet-based
Breast Implant Registry which would allow a patient to file her surgical history
in an online database so it would be accessible whenever needed. "Most breast
augmentation patients are so young at the time of their breast augmentation that
the chance of them needing a revision at some point in their lives is very
high,” says Dr. Frank.
Surgery centers in most states discard information
after between two and seven years, leaving many women with unanswered questions
and never-ending worries. "Not knowing what is inside you is frightening," says
Dr. Frank. The Breast Implant Registry (BIR, www.breastimplantregistry.com) empowers patients to take
control of their own information regarding their bodies.
"The size,
placement and volume of the existing implant is critical to a successful
examination and reoperative surgery," says Dr. Frank. "This information is often
unavailable due to the fact that patients misplace their implant cards and
surgery centers discard patient charts," says Dr. Frank.
Dr. Frank
initiated the Breast Implant Registry to answer confidential questions and
provide updated information on breast surgery. Rates for deflation, capsular
contracture, silent rupture of gel implants, and implant displacement can all be
tracked accurately. The web site (www.breastimplantregistry.com) also answers "soft science"
questions, such as those about the social and emotional benefits of breast
augmentation and reconstruction.
To use the Breast Implant Registry,
patients will use a secure, password-protected, database that complies with the
Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act. They can enter information
about their surgeon, procedure, and implants, and update their files if
revisions or additional procedures are performed. "This site is completely
confidential and it does not allow surgeons to access a patient's record without
the consent of the patient," added Frank.
One third of all women with
breast implants will have them replaced within 10 years. "The BIR gives them the
security of knowing the information will be available when needed," says Dr.
Frank. A registered patient will be reminded annually to confirm her contact
information, and to have her annual mammogram. She will also be advised when her
implant warranty will expire.
Registration for the Breast Implant
Registry is $25 for ten years.
Contact: Katie Jeter, McKinney Chicago,
312-944-6784 EXT: 319,
e-mail protected from spam bots
or
Robert E.
Frank, MD, Aria Cosmetic and Reconstructive Surgery, 219-924-3377
e-mail
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Source : http://www.prweb.com/releases/2005/5/prweb239849.htm