The financial burden of complications of overseas breast implants at the Royal Brisbane and Women’s Hospital

Abstract

Background: An increasing number of Australians are travelling overseas for aesthetic surgery. This study aims to establish the financial costs of complications arising from overseas inserted implants. Method: Data from the Australian Breast Device Registry (ABDR) on patients who have undergone remov-al of overseas inserted implants at the Royal Brisbane and Women’s Hospital from October 2014 to Octo-ber 2019 was analysed. Financial costs were calculated using electronic medical records and discharge codes. Results: Of the 331 cases of implant removals recorded, only eight (2.4%) were from overseas inserted de-vices. Seven of these were performed as emergency procedures. Two patients required more than one op-eration. Length of stay (LOS) ranged from two to 28 days with a median LOS of 8.6 days. Most patients had multidisciplinary team involvement with infectious diseases being the most consulted specialty. All pa-tients required in hospital IV antibiotic therapy and dressing changes. All were offered more than one out patient follow-up appointment. The total cost to our department surpassed AU$110 000 which represents four per cent of the total hospital spending on breast device explantations. Conclusion: Surgical complications from overseas implant procedures cost a small percentage of the hos-pital budget for breast procedures. However, with the increasing popularity of cosmetic tourism, this fig-ure could increase in the following years. We can use this information to educate individuals on making better choices while potentially reducing the financial burden to public hospitals in Queensland.