Implant breast augmentation shows good short-, long-term safety in transgender individuals

Implant-based breast augmentation procedures are safe in transgender individuals, yielding low rates of long-term reoperations and complications, a recent study has found.

The study included 527 transgender women and nonbinary individuals, all of whom had undergone breast augmentation. Over a median clinical follow-up duration of 11.2 years, the researchers documented an upward trend in median implant size, increasing from 275 cc in 1990 to 375 cc in 2010–2019 (p<0.01).

In terms of safety, the researchers reported that short-term complications were uncommon. The most frequent ones were infection (n=2; 0.4 percent) and haematoma (n=2; 0.4 percent).

Long-term complications were likewise rare and were comprised mostly of capsular contracture (n=26; 4.9 percent) and implant rupture (n=30; 5.7 percent) occurring after a mean of 6.8±4.7 and 12.9±6.5 years, respectively. One patient developed implant-related anaplastic large-cell lymphoma, diagnosed after multiple reoperations and the use of different prostheses.

Of note, five participants (0.9 percent) experienced transitional regret after breast augmentation, three of whom opted for explantation. Another patient needed explantation due to rupture, which occurred prior to the date of documented regret.

“The incidence of short- and long-term complications after implant-based breast augmentation in transgender women and nonbinary individuals is acceptable,” the researchers said, suggesting that “the procedure may be regarded as safe.”