The Demonstration of the Net Effect of Tranexamic Acid on Capsule Contracture in a Rat Model

This study investigates capsule contracture, the most common and distressing complication following breast implant surgery, characterized by excessive fibrosis due to an exaggerated inflammatory response to the implant surface. Despite the increasing number of studies on capsule contracture in recent years, limited research has been aimed at reducing it by preventing hematoma, whereas there is not any study demonstrating the direct effect of tranexamic acid on capsule contracture.

A total of 30 rats were divided into 3 groups of 10 rats each: a control group, a group receiving systemic (intraperitoneal) tranexamic acid, and a group receiving local tranexamic acid infiltration around the implant. Following implantation with a smooth surface mini-implant, the rats were monitored clinically for 3 months for capsule contracture. Subsequently, the capsule tissue around the implant was examined using intracapsular pressure monitoring, radiological examination, histological methods, and immunohistochemical methods, and the results were statistically analyzed.

In the ultrasonographic evaluation of capsule thickness, the control group exhibited the highest capsule thickness, whereas the local application group had the lowest (P < 0.001). Similar results were observed in intracapsular dynamic pressure measurements. Histopathologic evaluation also showed the highest capsule thickness in the control group and the lowest in the local application group (P < 0.001). Inflammatory cell density evaluation yielded similar results.

The study concluded that groups treated with tranexamic acid exhibited less capsule contracture compared with the control group. Local application of tranexamic acid around the implant was found to be more effective than intraperitoneal application.