Infection is most common complication of facial implants

(HealthDay)—The most common complications of facial implants include infection, implant migration, and extrusion, according to a study published online Jan. 18 in JAMA Facial Plastic Surgery.

Hani M. Rayess, M.D., from the Wayne State University School of Medicine in Detroit, and colleagues conducted a cross-sectional study to review complications after facial implants performed on patients across the United States from January 2006 to December 2016.

The researchers identified 39 cases of adverse events reported to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration; 41 percent involved malar implants and 31 percent chin implants. The most common complications included infection, implant migration, swelling, and extrusion (46, 23, 18, and 10 percent, respectively); infection occurred at a mean of 83.3 days after surgery. The mean time to migration or extrusion was 381.1 days. Implant removal was necessary for 83 percent of the patients. Alleged inadequate informed consent and requiring additional surgical intervention (i.e., removal) were the most commonly cited factors in 12 malpractice cases identified in publicly available court proceedings.

"Infection and implant migration or extrusion are the most common complications of facial implants. Most of these complications necessitate removal," the authors write. "These considerations need to be discussed with patients preoperatively as part of the informed consent process, as allegedly inadequate informed consent was cited in a significant proportion of resultant litigation."