I have used High Resolution Ultrasound in my office for over five years now and found it to be useful for many applications, but particularly for examining silicone breast implants. The FDA advises that silicone implants be examined with MRI or ultrasound 6 years post implantation and then every 3 years thereafter. I always counsel patients that I am a Plastic Surgeon looking for clear evidence of silicone leak and not a Radiologist reading an MRI study. A recent study in the Aesthetic Surgery Journal looked at how good Plastic Surgeon performed office based ultrasound is at diagnosing leaking silicone implants. Not surprisingly, ultrasound is quite effective. Without getting into statistical jargon, the investigators found an average of 93% accuracy for the study period with a trend to even better accuracy with more experience.
