Breast implants materials and surfaces

Breast implants filling and shell

For many years, silicone gel and saline solution have been successfully used as filling materials for implants.

The silicone gel used by POLYTECH is form-stable and returns to its original shape after moderate compression. A section through a POLYTECH implant shows the soft yet cohesive texture of the gel. In terms of, a silicone breast implant imitates the natural breast.

The breast implant shell is a silicone elastomer, a chemically and mechanically resistant material. Composed of different layers, the shell has a well-defined structure with a special barrier layer designed to reduce silicone migration.

POLYTECH anatomical silicone implant with smooth surface, showing condensation on the exterior against a blue background.

What is Silicone?

The basis of silicone is silicon, the second most common element on earth, right after oxygen. For example, the earth's crust is about 28% silicon and the material can also be found in stones, clay and sand. Silicone is obtained by a chemical reaction. It contains no additives, especially no plasticisers, and has been used in medical products for over 40 years. 

Silicone has been used since the mid-20th century, especially for medical products. You can find it in probes, catheters, coatings of puncture needles and pacemakers, gloves and wound dressings.

In soft tissue surgery, silicone implants are used to compensate for congenital defects or features resulting from disease, injury and aging. Many years of clinical experience and a vast number of tests have proven the safety of silicone for medical use. 

In our everyday lives, we encounter silicone in a wide variety of forms: as a foam-binding ingredient in food, as a water-repellent clothing coating, as an insulating material in electrical appliances, as an acid binder in stomach products or as a carrier in deodorants.

Silicone is manufactured as silicone elastomer, silicone gel and silicone oil. For implants, only medical-grade silicone approved for long-term implantation is used.

Breast implants surfaces

POLYTECH’s breast implants are available in 4 different shell surfaces. It is important to consult your surgeon regarding the characteristics of the different surfaces and what is recommended for your individual needs:

  • Microthane®*- POLYTECH’s micro-polyurethane covered shell
    This shell is not defined by its texture but by its cover: a micro-polyurethane foam-cover. Following implantation, the contact area between this implant cover and the surrounding tissue provides a tissue favouring transition layer into which the natural healing process develops, creating high adherence between the implant and the tissue. Microthane®* is POLYTECH's micro-polyurethane foam-covered implant shell. See more on Microthane®* below.
    At POLYTECH, we strongly believe in innovation and sustainability.
    We succeed in developing groundbreaking products while continuously improving existing processes to enhance efficiency and quality and reduce waste.
    Our Microthane®* implants are made with fully cured shell and adhesive foam assembly, European patent application pending No. 25194603.4 filed on August 07, 2025.
  • MESMO® – POLYTECH’s fine micro-textured shell surface
    combines the benefits of both smooth and textured surfaces, with a finer surface requiring smaller incisions and a low rate of capsular contracture.4-7
  • POLYtxt® – POLYTECH’s micro-textured shell surface
    Textured surface is designed to deliver greater tissue adherence.
  • POLYsmoooth™ – POLYTECH’s smooth implants.
    The first silicone breast implants had a smooth shell surface and smooth implants are still used today.
Close-up of POLYTECH silicone breast implants with textured surfaces in various colors, displayed against a blue background.

Micropolyurethane foam = Microthane®*

The POLYTECH brand name for micro-polyurethane shell-covered breast implants is Microthane®*.

With over 45 years of experience in breast augmentation surgery, we know that micropolyurethane breast implants significantly reduce complications associated with breast implant surgery.

Microthane®* covered implants have the advantage of remaining exactly in the position where they were placed during the operation. Due to their surface structure, they do not slip or rotate and the tissue bonds with them. In addition, they offer greater protection against capsular fibrosis or capsular contracture. This special cover ensures a significantly reduced overall complication rate.1-3
POLYTECH Health & Aesthetics is the only European manufacturer of breast implants with a Microthane®* coating.

* Made with fully cured shell and adhesive foam assembly, European patent application pending No. 25194603.4 filed on August 07, 2025. 

1. Vazquez, G., Pellon, A. (2007) Polyurethane-coated silicone-gel breast implants used for 18 years. Aesth. Plast. Surg. 31, 330-336 
2. Handel, N., Cordray, T., Gutierrez, J., Jensen, J.A. (2006) A long-term study of outcomes, complications, and patient satisfaction with breast implants. PRS 117, 757 et seq. 
3. Handel, N. (2006) Long-term safety and efficacy of polyurethane foam-covered breast implants. Aesth. Surg. J 26, 265-274
4. Handel, N., Silverstein, M.J., Jensen, J.A., Collins, A., Zierk K. (1991) Comparative experience with smooth and polyurethane breast implants using the Kaplan- Meier method of survival analysis. Plast. Reconstr. Surg. 88, 475-481 
5. Kjoller, K., Holmich, L.R., Jacobsen, P.H., Friis, S., Fryzek, J., McLaughlin, J.K., Lipworth, L., Henriksen, T.F., Jorgensen, S., Bittmann, S., Olsen, J.H. (2002) Epi¬demiological investigation of local complications after cosmetic breast implant surgery in Demark. Annals of Plastic Surgery 48(3), 229-237 
6. Malata, C.M., Feldberg, L., Coleman, D.J., Foo, I.T., Scarpe, D.T. (1997) Textured or smooth implants for breast augmentation? Three-year follow-up of a prospective randomised controlled trial. British Journal of Plastic Surgery 50(2), 99-105 
7. Tebbetts, J.B. (2001) A surgical perspective from two decades of breast augmen¬tation. Clinics in Plastic Surgery 28(3), 425-434