infection vs rejection of implant

I am hoping others will chime in because this is something I have wondered about. From what I understand, there is no such thing as your body "rejecting" the implant as it is not made of materials that the body rejects. The problem is infection, usually caused during surgery by the introduction of staph or other bacteria. Once an infection takes hold in the breast, if there is an implant or expander within it, and the infection involves the pocket that holds the implant/ expander or if fluid builds up around the implant, it has to come out in order to heal (along with administering whatever antibiotics recommended by an infectious disease doc.) I had a BMX direct to implants and lost one months after surgery (ironically in the non cancer breast) to a serious infection. My PS tried to treat with antibiotics and even did a removal/rinse antibiotic rinse procedure. It seemed to totally resolve, but a month later I became very ill very suddenly, the infection peaked, and the breast virtually exploded with infection. Implant had to be removed, there was a lot of tissue damage and weeks of IV antibiotics. So I would not mess with it; if your doc feels it should come out, it likely should. They will do a culture to determine the bacteria responsible and treat accordingly. It is enormously disappointing, but you can try again after completing antibiotics and healing. I really do not understand why infection is so prevalent. I know it is always possible with any surgery or invasive procedure, but is seems scarily common with post BC implant surgery, whether via expanders or one step.

RejectionvsInfection, Yeah, your exertion would not have caused your problem; I had the same fear as I went back to work fairly soon after BMX and worried that it had contributed to my symptoms. I am OK and did not replace the implant, and I am not sure if I ever will. I would prefer having one, but the idea of going through that again is not appealing. (The cancer side was fine, and the implant is still in place.) At this point, I would need an expander and perhaps some skin from elsewhere due to tissue damage from the infection, and I am not willing to deal with all of that. The infection was very scary; it was resistant to antibiotics and I was quite ill, hospitalized for a week and on IV drugs for in the hospital and for 2 weeks after that. Infections are very, very common even in the best hospitals from what I have read in the year since my experience. Patients who are damaged and the families of those who die have virtually no shot of redress.Though our country (US) is often criticized for being sue-happy, this is one area of the law where hospitals literally get away with murder. So much of it seems preventable, there just does not seem to be the will to change the situation. When I was in the hospital and blaming myself for my situation, the infectious disease doc took pity and told me the truth; the infection was so deep in the tissue of the affected breast that it was likely caused by a surgical instrument/equipment. Usually they will not tell you anything that specific, and simply write it off as "infection" as if the germs are just floating in the air and fall into the breast! I was happy for her candor because at that point, I was angry at myself for putting work ahead of my health and scared of not just losing the breast, but losing my life. Am hoping others respond here too as I have found the subject of hospital acquired infection pretty astounding. Good luck, I hope that your redness goes away without further treatment, but be vigilant, of course!