Tara Williams-Jones Tara's Life w/ BII & ALCL

First post: Sep 23, 2016 Latest post: Aug 10, 2019
2000 - first set of implants placed. No issues I'm aware of. 
#2010- I got my ten year old implants replaced from dr in Chicago. 
#Post op 6months in 2010- recent- health declined significantly.# About a month and a half ago I woke up and noticed my right breast implant had completely deflated.  I called my regular Doctor Who I haven't met yet because she's new to me and my appointment isn't until November and they gave me a recommendation to go to their affiliated plastic surgery office called transformations on the west side. I was able to obtain an appointment that same day and go in and speak with the doctor and get options and decided to take out the deflated implant and replace it with a new one.  Through my research about the implant itself I learned that those particular implants had valve leak problems and some of the ones around the year mine were put in and some very close to my model number had been  recalled but not this particular implant that was inside me.  The only thing I found out about the ones inside me was that they did have the same valve problems and the same rupture problems but they were never recalled.  While I was doing my research to find out if it was under warranty and what my rebates would be I came across many stories of women dealing with what they named as "Breast Implant Illness".  I also learned that many women were having theirs removed because of similar stories of their health declining.  After learning all this information I decided to meet with the nurse practitioner at transformations to discuss if she thought putting a new one back inside me was a good idea or should I just have them both removed or what my options would be and was hoping to get an honest answer and link all of my illnesses and symptoms  together at this point. She reassured me that I would be fine (there is no definite link between the breast implants causing the health issues) and made me feel that I should be secure in my decision to put a new implant back in my body.  After relaying the information to my family we discussed if I should go ahead with the surgery and we all agreed that if we just got the ruptured one out and put a new one in that things would be on an upward swing and my health would at least regain some of what it had been in the past  before 2010 more specifically since 2015 (when we now know the valve opened at that time of my skin worsening and had started a slow leak where it finally gave way  A month and a half ago and deflated completely. ) (We know this happened back in 2015 because of the scar tissue that had built up and the mammograms/ultrasounds  that were done recently  as well as what the plastic surgeon had said after surgery about removal of all the scar tissue and build up).  
#So on September 13 I had the removal of the deflated implant, cleaning out of all the scar tissue and mass that had built up, they put a new implant in as well as a blood drip drain and said everything looked good and sent me home. 
#Which brings us to the night of surgery postop evening of September 13 complications :
#That evening I came home from transformations I had developed a water blister  on my nonsurgical left breast where I have been told the valve of my old implant is currently. I expressed the wound, applied bacitracin ointment and because it wasn't hitting the inside of the compression  bra , I left it uncovered as far as a bandage goes.  That night I also noticed that as I was lightly (with my fingertips only) cleaning off the Betadine solution from surgery, the side my new implant was on had began shedding dry flaky sheets of green skin that literally peeled off that entire right side of my body.  Not down to raw skin but just shed off my body in excess.  The same evening I also noticed that after I had lightly scrubbed the Betadine solution from the left side of my body which was the non-surgical site I was developing eczema looking patches and wounds on that left side of my body and  by the time I tried to sleep for that night they had begun oozing green infection. 
#As the week post op progressed I became worse with the following symptoms: fever, breathing problems, infection coming out everywhere (except it wasn't oozing from surgical incision yet so they didn't act on the symptoms of infection until I got so bad one week post op and then the surgical site was infected at that time as well), fainting, bruising, joint n body ache pain so bad that I could not walk, cramping, migraine since day one post op til currently, sinus infection type reaction and other symptoms. I used a nebulizer and inhaler at home for the breathing issues. I tried to manage each symptom individually with heat compresses, cold compresses, aspirin, ibuprofen, prescribed pain meds, prescribed anti nausea, prescribed digestive meds etc. 
#By Friday (day four post op) my left non surgical breast popped the valve thru my skin to the outside of my body. I made it to my post op appt at transformations on Monday and explained all of the above to the nurse practitioner who then said "just wait and see the dr this Thursday and we will go from there".  My mother was in the room for my post op appt as well. The nurse practitioner also removed my drain during that visit. 
#By the time I got home from post op appt I was passing out, all my symptoms were worsening and my surgical site was getting swollen and more infected. 
#By the next day an ambulance was called and they took me to the new UW hospital at American who started blood tests, antibiotics, pain meds, chest X-rays, and decided to move me via ambulance to the UW hospital downtown where the plastics surgery division has a wing and they admitted me there. They did more blood tests, X-rays, ultrasounds that same day and said I was going to be put on four different antibiotics (one to help with the septic part that was setting in), potassium since that level was extremely low and had me on no food or drink until next morning in case an emergency surgery was needed to remove the new implant immediately due to the cellulitis and possible abscess forming. #Next morning: They said the ultrasound showed cellulitis but no abscess so they cancelled emergency surgery and just kept me one additional night to flood me with all the IV antibiotics, pain meds and six other meds to get me feeling better. Yesterday morning I was to be discharged and follow up next week with the plastic surgeon who is going to remove both implants when I'm healthy enough in couple weeks or take them out sooner if abscess forms before that. I had a seizure in front of the nurses taking my vitals but plastics said to release me regardless and just follow up with my regular dr who I don't even meet until November 30. I am at home currently and my condition is the same with no improvement thus far and I'm leaking saline and blood  from the non surgical breast where the valve has popped through my breast skin  as well as leaking thru the nipple. 

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