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-Medical device maker Mentor Corp. on Monday said quarterly profit slipped 3 percent on lower-than-expected sales of the company's breast implants.

Sales of breast implants grew 8 percent during the quarter to $50.5 million, meeting lowered Wall St. expectations.

Company executives say patients have been delaying their breast augmentation surgeries ahead of signs U.S. regulators could soon approve the company's silicone gel-filled breast implants after a 13-year ban.

Its current breast implants are made of saline.

In a conference call with analysts, Mentor executives repeated their conviction that implant sales will rebound after the winter, and the company reiterated its full-year outlook.

For 2006, Mentor expects earnings per share of $1.60 to $1.65, on sales it expects to grow at a low double-digit rate over 2005 sales of $483.4 million.

Second-quarter net income was $12.1 million, or 25 cents per share, versus $12.5 million, or 26 cents per share, a year ago.

Wall Street analysts polled by Reuters Estimates were looking for 25 cents on average. Prior to the company's warning earlier this month that sales of its breast implants were lower than expected, analysts had been forecasting 34 cents per share.

Sales for the quarter rose 5 percent to $114.3 million from $108.8 million a year ago.

The quarterly results were also hurt by a higher tax rate related to the company's intention to repatriate about $20 million to $25 million of its foreign earnings, the company said. The tax rate was 35 percent, compared to 31.6 percent a year ago.

For the remainder of the year, Mentor executives expect the tax rate to be 33 percent to 34 percent, and slightly lower than that next year, company executives said.