bariatric operations, either using simple permanent surgery while sewing
guts together, or using a band or other mechanical device to slow food
down from being transferred or digested.^81
GYNECOLOGYThe most common use of implants in gynecology is transvaginal mesh
(TVM), used to treat pelvic organ prolapse (POP), a condition that most
frequently affects women after pregnancy. There are an estimated 200,000
TVM operations performed every year in the United States.^82 While POP
is a common postpartum condition (approximately 10 percent of
pregnancies),^83 and TVM is ordinarily performed, the FDA in 2011 issued
a safety communication stating that “the use of transvaginal mesh may put
women at a higher risk of complications without increased benefit to their
quality of life.”^84
Urinary incontinence treatment is now most commonly treated with the
use of a synthetic device that functions as a sling.^85 Among American
women aged eighteen to sixty-four, the rate of sling repair is 198.3 per
100,000 women; the rate for women older than sixty-five is even higher,
perhaps 60 percent more.^86 The total of sling operations for urinary
incontinence is estimated at 215,000 women per year in the United States.
PLASTIC SURGERY:The American Society of Plastic Surgeons reported 286,254 breast
augmentation operations in 2014.^87 Most women choose silicone gel-
filled implants, which were provisionally approved in 2006 by the FDA.^88
Most other plastic surgery operations do not incorporate implants,
including face eyelid surgery, breast reduction, and liposuction. Many
plastic surgery operations entail the use of injected fillers that get
degraded and removed by the body, or transfer of fat cells from other parts
of one’s own body. Neither qualify as permanent implants