Originally published Tuesday, January 31, 2012 at 10:43 AM
Summary Box: Venezuelans ditch PIP breast implants
RUSH IS ON: Thousands of women worldwide are consulting their doctors about health concerns that have sprung up since December due to faulty silicone breast implants made by the now-defunct French company Poly Implant Prothese, or PIP.
The Associated Press
RUSH IS ON: Thousands of women worldwide are consulting their doctors about health concerns that have sprung up since December due to faulty silicone breast implants made by the now-defunct French company Poly Implant Prothese, or PIP.
VENEZUELAN IMPACT: The scandal has hit beauty-obsessed Venezuela particularly hard. An estimated 16,000 Venezuelans have the implants, one of the highest figures among Latin American countries, along with much-larger Brazil, where about 20,000 women have either PIP or other defective implants.
THE PROBLEM: In some cases, the implants filled with industrial-grade silicone have split open, prompting growing demand for their removal.