FAQs: Accolate for Capsular Contracture

Accolate for Capsular Contracture of Breast Implants

ALLURE Magazine recently carried the following:

According to a recent study, an asthma pill may be an antidote to a troubling side effect of breast augmentation - the hardening of internal scar tissue. Up to 30 percent of women with implants either have or are likely to develop this condition, known as capsular contracture. It can occur within weeks or years of surgery, in one breast or both, and be mildly annoying or painful and disfiguring.

Doctors may prescribe massage, antibiotics, or vitamin E. Serious cases necessitate surgery. At the annual meeting of the American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery in late April of 2002, plastic surgeons, Dr. S. Larry Schlesinger of Maui, HI, and Dr. Richard Ellenbogen of Beverly Hills, CA reported that the asthma drug Accolate, taken twice a day for 3 to 6 months, can often prevent contractures and soften existing ones. The medication blocks leukotrienes, by-products of white blood cells that trigger inflammation. New York, NY based plastic surgeon, Dr. Alan Matarasso says he is "cautiously optimistic" until controlled studies are done, but if proven, the drug "could be beneficial to thousands of women." – Allure Magazine: JOAN KRON, June 2002

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