According to a new report, women who have had breast implants are three times more likely to commit suicide than their natural counterparts. Deaths related to mental disorders, including drug or alcohol dependence, were also three times higher among women who had had breast implants.

Although the study did not address the reasons behind the suicides, many believe it is because these women already have psychological problems before they go under the knife. Conditions are unlikely to improve after surgery and this may account for the higher numbers.

Some earlier studies have already shown that as many as 15% of patients who undergo cosmetic surgery have body dysmorphic disorder, a conditions where patients perceive minor physical flaws as huge flaws and can cause the patient severe distress. Patients with body dysmorphic disorder are said to have a higher rate of suicidal thoughts than the average person and these thoughts rarely improve after surgery.

The study followed 3,527 Swedish women who received implants between 1965 and 1993. Only those who had cosmetic surgery for cosmetic reasons were included in the study women who had had implants for reasons such as breast cancer were not included.

Some of the women were tracked for as long as 29 years and scientists discovered that the suicide risk increased over time. In the first ten years after the implants, no risk was found; after the first ten years, the risk was 4.5 times higher, rising to 6 times higher after 20 years. These findings may be due to the physical improvement after surgery which cannot be sustained, therefore accounting for the increase in suicide risk as the years go by.

Researchers are keen to point out that their results may have limited applicability because cosmetic surgery is more acceptable in today’s world than if was 40 years ago. However, they have said that it reinforces the need for prospective patients to go through a psychological screening before they are accepted for cosmetic surgery.