LOS ANGELES - A Beverly Hills plastic surgeon who calls himself "the breast expert" is facing trial in Los Angeles on charges of smuggling silicone implants into the United States and placing them in at least three women.

Frederic Corbin, 62, was indicted in February by a secret grand jury on charges that he got the silicone implants from Mexico and falsified patient records to conform to a clinical study, federal prosecutors said on Wednesday.

They were replaced by saline-filled implants, but many of the 300,000 women who have cosmetic breast surgery in the United States every year prefer the look and feel of silicone implants, which are available in other countries.

In the United States, silicone can be used only in controlled clinical studies for breast reconstruction after mastectomy, correction of congenital deformities, or replacement of existing silicone implants that have ruptured.

According to the indictment, Corbin put French-made silicone implants acquired in Mexico into three patients for aesthetic reasons while he was participating in the approved clinical studies.

"This is totally inaccurate. It is a lie that has been perpetrated by a disgruntled ex-employee who has done everything to harm Dr. Corbin professionally and personally," said Ruth Mayes, manager of his Beverly Hills office.

"It has nothing to do with patient care and safety. Every patient implanted with silicone gel has been approved under the guidelines," she said.

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