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Case Reports
. 2021 May 22;3(3):ojab021.
doi: 10.1093/asjof/ojab021. eCollection 2021 Sep.

A Case Report of Capsular Contracture Immediately Following COVID-19 Vaccination

Richard J Restifo
Case Reports

A Case Report of Capsular Contracture Immediately Following COVID-19 Vaccination

Richard J Restifo. Aesthet Surg J Open Forum. .

Erratum in

Abstract

Capsular contracture is fundamentally an immunological/inflammatory response to the implant, treating it as a foreign body in need of exclusion from the immune system. The capsule surrounding the implant is populated by a rich variety of immunologically active cells such as macrophages, T lymphocytes, and myofibroblasts. Vaccination in general and the COVID-19 vaccine in particular result in specific and nonspecific activation of the immune system, including those immune cells in proximity to the implant. This phenomenon has been previously demonstrated in delayed inflammatory reactions to previously implanted hyaluronic acid fillers following COVID-19 vaccination. This report is what is believed to be the first case of the rapid development of severe ipsilateral capsular contracture in the immediate aftermath of the second dose of the BNT162b2 (Pfizer) vaccine.

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Figures

Figure 1.
Figure 1.
A 34-year-old healthy woman presented for augmentation/mastopexy. Preoperative AP view.
Figure 2.
Figure 2.
Six weeks’ postoperative AP view. Implants are soft and moveable (Baker I).
Figure 3.
Figure 3.
Six and one-half months’ postoperative AP view/6 days after the second dose of Pfizer vaccine. Enlarged left axillary lymph node.
Figure 4.
Figure 4.
Seven months’ postoperative AP view/20 days after the second dose of Pfizer vaccine. Left breast is hard and painful (Baker IV).
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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