Imaging of breast implants: Normal appearance

Every year in France, an increasing number of patients are receiving breast implants (approximately 400,000 women with implants in 2017) for cosmetic purposes or for post therapeutic reconstruction after oncological treatment. There are different types of breast implants, the most frequently encountered being those made of silicone gel and saline-filled prostheses. The normal appearance of breast prostheses is specific both in standard workup examinations and in magnetic resonance imaging. The purpose of this article is to specify to the radiologist the subtle physiological images that may be encountered during the exploration of a normal implant and that should not be wrongly described as pathological (radial folds, periprosthetic effusion, valve, etc.) in order not to cause unnecessary anxiety in the patient. This article also includes the aspect of the latest prosthetic technological innovations (absorbable synthetic surgical mesh, radio high frequency identification device, etc.). (c) 2023 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.