The Keller Funnel
The Best Invention Since Breast Implants?
The Keller Funnel is a major advancement in silicone breast implant delivery. It’s a single-use, soft, sterile cone-shaped device that resembles a pastry bag. It’s lined with a special interior coating that creates a super slick surface that literally “propels the gel” implant into the pocket.
Dr. Reid and Dr. Gordon use the Keller Funnel to insert breast implants of all sizes in every breast augmentation surgery they perform.
Keller Funnel offers 3 key advantages:
- Allows for a “No Touch” technique. This reduces your risk of Capsular Contracture because the implant never touches your skin, nor is it handled by the surgeon.
- Results in a shorter incision with less bruising and post-operative discomfort because there is no stretching of your skin and/or your incision when placing the implant.
- Limits local stress on the implant shell and potential rupture
Why is the “No Touch” Technique so important?
In surgery, your skin is prepped with a strong anti-bacterial cleanser and all precautions are taken, but no matter how sterile your surgeon and the operating room are, the risk of getting a minute amount of bacteria on the shell of the implant is always possible. The highest risk is when the implant is being inserted into the pocket because that’s when the implant can come into contact with your skin. Bacterial contamination of the implant causes a prolonged inflammatory response and can lead to Capsular Contracture.
When surgeons use the funnel, the implant goes from the sterile container, where it is soaked in a triple antibiotic solution, directly into the funnel and then straight into the breast pocket. The outside of the funnel is the only thing that touches your skin or the surgeons gloves.
How does the use of the Keller Funnel decrease the length of the incision?
Unlike saline implants, silicone gel breast implants are pre-filled. Before the revolutionary Keller Funnel came into use, the larger the implant, the longer the incision needed to be. The super slick surface on the inside of the funnel allows the surgeon to slide the implant right into the pocket through an incision 4 cm or 1.5” long.
Why is decreasing stress on the implant shell so important?
Silicone gel implants are a lot like really tough water balloons. Imagine trying to get a water balloon through a small hole. Before the Keller Funnel, we had to place implants like water balloons, forcing them in with the tip of our finger. This technique is called the “finger method”. It can take up to 10 minutes, especially if the implant is large or a gummy bear device. The finger method places a lot of stress on the shell of the implant. The implant and the gel inside can become stretched and deformed. The FDA has suggested that one of the mechanisms for late rupture of implants is damage during implantation. An independent engineering study showed that by using the Keller Funnel™ the measured force on a 300 cc smooth round implant inserted through a 3.5 cm incision was reduced from a mean of 8700 grams (19.2 lbs) to a mean of only 273 grams (0.60 lbs). The traditional finger push method requires over 27 pounds of force to deliver a 400 cc silicone implant through a 3.5 cm incision. The Keller Funnel™ reduces that force by over 95% to only 0.64 pounds. Basically, it’s magic. The proprietary hydrophilic coating reduces the forces needed to advance the implant by lowering the coefficient of friction. That reduction of force is good for the doctor, good for his/her finger, good for the patient, and great for the implant.
