Table 4.

Rates of Major Complications for Unilateral and Bilateral Implant-Based Breast Reconstructions

Major Complication	Implant
	Unilateral	Bilateral
	N=343 (%)	N=482 (%)
Any Major Complication	40 (11.7)	83 (17.2)
Post-operative bleeding or hematoma requiring needle aspiration or re-operation	9 (2.6)	19 (3.9)
Wound infection requiring IV antibiotics	11 (3.2)	25 (5.2)
Wound infection requiring surgical drainage	3 (0.9)	6 (1.2)
Capsular contracture (Baker Class III or IV)	1 (0.3)	8 (1.7)
Implant malposition	1 (0.3)	3 (0.6)
Seroma	12 (3.5)	18 (3.5)
Implant leakage	3 (0.9)	2 (0.4)
Abdominal wall bulge, laxity or hernia requiring surgery	0	1 (0.2)
Tissue expander removal	20 (5.8)	47 (9.8)
Implant removal	7 (2.0)	24 (5.0)
Deep vein thrombosis	3 (0.9)	0
Pulmonary embolus	0	2 (0.4)
Other Major Complications**	2 (0.6)	2 (0.4)

^**Other major complications include: negative exploration & washout for suspected hematoma, (n=1); nipple flap necrosis (n=2); pneumothorax (n=1).