Implant lifetimes

totemboytotemboy
edited February 2015 in Magnets
Just wondering what the current average and upper limits are on implants before rejection. If this has been done before then I'll just delete this. It would be useful if you posted what type of magnet/coating you had and where on your body you got it implanted. I just wanted to do this since I've been considering removing my magnet for the past year or so because it seems to have migrated, but it seems to be fairly stable.

I got a steve haworth magnet installed in my ring finger (around the pad) about 2 years ago.
Tagged:

Comments

  • glimsglims
    As long as the coating is not compromised (finger gets slammed in a door, localized infection, etc) there is no particular upper limit that I am aware of for how long the magnet will stay in your body.

    How much migration have you noticed and how have you measured this?
  • DirectorXDirectorX
    no implant is permanent. Everything must come out at some point. Even things like artificial hips and such are designed with eventual removal in mind. Granted, a well designed implant could last decades, but sometimes they don't.
  • EzekielEzekiel
    A linked question : how much time does a parylene coating usually lasts :

    - In optimal conditions ?
    - If slighly damaged ?

    Do you advise to remove a magnet after a maximum number of years / months ???
  • DirectorXDirectorX
    optimal conditions, 15 years? Parylene has had some problems though compared to silicone, and I've seen implants fail in under a year on occasion. 

    The good news is that the area will turn black when the coating is compromised. It will also feel sore. When that happens you need to rip it out asap.
  • glimsglims
    >"The good news is that the area will turn black when the coating is compromised. 
    >It will also feel sore. When that happens you need to rip it out asap."
    And this is why I keep coming back. 

    Ok, studies show that parylene starts to bite it at about 3 months on electronics. This is, of course, generally a bit over twice human body heat. However, we are much more ... internally aggressive than a circuit board.
    General rule of thumb: If it isn't giving you issues, and it's inert (a piece of magnet that you stuck in your finger) don't mess with it. I have a small piece of steel in one of my fingers, kinda by random. Been there for 20 years. 
    Every person's body responds to implants differently, and the implant technique as well as the coating can have as much to do with how long it lasts.
    If it is sore, swollen, or changing colour after the healing time is over, take it out. 
    If you have quantitatively measured movement (still waiting on that measurement btw), probably should take it out.
    Fever? take it out.
    As for the above question, if you damage your device, remove your device. And putting foreign objects inside a person is never considered an optimal condition. So, please restate the question.

    However, if you are just worrying about stuff and there are no signs that any of the afore mentioned issues are arising, then just keep it in.

    The magnets are small enough and in a particular region where that the common issues with larger implants and their coatings are not necessarily an issue. I'm not saying coatings are not needed. Just that the low level degradation would not necessarily cause the issues that major implant have.
  • EzekielEzekiel
    edited January 2014
    "The magnets are small enough and in a particular region where that the
    common issues with larger implants and their coatings are
    not necessarily an issue. I'm not saying coatings are not needed. Just
    that the low level degradation would not necessarily cause the issues
    that major implant have."


    glims you're saying coating is not important for neodynium ?

    I thought corrosion could be an issue, as well as crumbling of the magnet and "magnetic powder" getting lost in the entire body  oO

    Also would this "magnetic powder" be a problem, considering that many metals are already present in our blood and tissues ??

    A last question related to the original theme of this thread : for how long have you been implanted yourselves ?


  • SaalSaal
    @Ezekiel: The magnet you have is presumably a neodymium rare earth magnet, in which case mild heavy metal poisoning is a possibility should chipping occur.

    Don't get glims wrong, coating is an issue, he just means to say that it's not nearly as much of an issue as implants in other areas and of other varieties.
  • alexiddqdalexiddqd
    So is upgrading a magnet every 5-10 years a valid possibility? Parylene bonds with tissue right? Would that be an issue?
  • glimsglims
    edited January 2014
    Excellent clarification @Saal, coating are _always_ an issue. Just not in the way they are for like, a pacemaker or a replacement kneecap.

    As for upgrading your magnet... do you need an upgrade? Is there any reason to do so? If not, then don't bother.

    In regards to Ezekial's last question, I personally don't fuck with biological systems unless there is some hard data on it and some serious net benefit. This includes stuffing tiny bits of rock into my fingertips.
  • crazyivancrazyivan
    @alexiddqd The parylene coating on one of my magnets definitely gave me problems.  I thought I'd be able to make an incision and pull it out with a strong a magnet, like I had done previously with Sugru coated implants, but that didn't work.  Instead I had to cut the magnet free from my tissue with a scalpel.  
  • glimsglims
    and again we revisit the theme of a persons body being not capable of hot swapping peripherals. 
  • alexiddqdalexiddqd
    My magnet is fairly large so if had the option to change to a smaller magnet of comparable strength in a few years I would go for it. It would be a pain though, as the magnet I have now is 3x7mm so I assume that either healing time or a different finger would be necessary so I don't have a loose magnet in a cavity.
Sign In or Register to comment.