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Safety of Silicone Breast Implants (1999) / Chapter Skim
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10 Neurological Disease and Its Association with Silicone Breast Implants
Pages 242-247

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From page 242...
... Neurologic diagnoses examined included multiple sclerosis, neuritis of the optic nerve, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, diseases of the nerve roots and plexus, mononeuritis of the upper extremity (median, ulnar, and radial nerves) , mononeuritis of the lower extremity, Guillain-Barre syndrome, and Meniere's disease.
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From page 243...
... The presence of the 68-kDa protein was not significantly associated with the presence of silicone breast implants (Kim and Harris, 1998~. The committee has concluded that these well-designed epidemiological studies provide limited evidence for the lack of association between breast implants and neurologic disease.
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From page 244...
... In response to inquiries to the American Academy of Neurology (AAN) regarding scientific reports that associated neurological disease with silicone breast implants, the AAN Practice Committee performed an extensive search of the scientific literature from 1975 on (Ferguson, 1997~.
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From page 245...
... A referring neurologist had made the diagnosis of atypical multiple sclerosis with physical findings of optic neuritis, hyperreflexia, spastic paraparesis, stocking-glove sensory loss, nystagmus, and ataxia. MRI had demonstrated white matter lesions in 21 of these women.
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From page 246...
... Electrodiagnostic findings of axonopathy and myopathy in three women were not supported by clinical findings. Diagnostic imprecision and preconceptions were exemplified by the use of the term "silicone encephalopathy," which was applied whenever any cognitive complaint existed, even with normal mental status testing.
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From page 247...
... , and examination of sural nerves in cadavers of women with silicone breast implants did not reveal elevated silicon concentrations (Evans et al., 1996~. CONCLUSIONS The available studies suggesting neurologic disease, with the exception of obvious local problems due to the physical presence of silicone gel which can compress nerves following implant rupture and migration of the gel, have defects that limit any conclusions to be drawn from them.
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Key Terms

  • silicone breast
  • neurologic disease
  • relative risk
  • multiple sclerosis
  • hearing loss

  • breast reduction
  • matter lesions
  • sural nerve
  • neurological disease
  • motor neuropathy

  • white matter
  • epidemiological studies
  • multifocal motor
  • reduction surgery
  • medical records

  • significant deficit
  • nerve biopsies
  • practice committee
  • chronic inflammatory
  • sural nerves

  • physical findings
  • oligoclonal bands
  • undergone breast
  • carpal tunnel
  • central nervous

  • polarizing microscopy
  • myasthenia gravis
  • tunnel syndrome
  • laboratory data
  • crystalline silica


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