One of the questions any good cosmetic surgeon will ask you, when assessing your readiness for surgery, will be if you are a smoker. At first, this may seem like just another medical professional nagging about your smoking habit. Think again.
Smoking has a direct impact on your surgical results. Facelifts, Botox Cosmetic injections, and facial fat transfers are just a few of the procedures that can have their results ruined by smoking. Continued exposure to smoke will make your tight, smooth skin become leathery and dull. Constant puffing will force wrinkles to form around your lips and at the edges of your eyes. The irritants in cigarette smoke can also cause bags and dark circles under your eyes.
The side-effects of smoking after cosmetic surgery are more than skin deep. Smoking can actually keep you from healing after your procedure. Nicotine constricts the blood flow in your tissues, resulting in extremely in slow tissue repair and healing. In surgeries where your skin is widely undermined (cut and repositioned), such as a facelift, breast lift, or tummy tuck, this poor blood flow increases the probability and severity of scarring.
Your doctor will have suggestions to help you stop smoking, and will be able to tell you how far before your procedure that you need to be cigarette free. To achieve optimum results, this will also mean avoiding nicotine gum, the patch, or any other sources of nicotine, which can contribute to the same problems. There are many approaches to stop smoking all together. Medical approaches include the patch or prescription strength medicines; holistic options can include acupuncture and hypnotism.
Vitenas Cosmetic Surgery encourages all of our patients to no longer be a smoker, before we perform any surgical procedures. When you come in for your initial consultation, Dr. Vitenas will discuss your situation, and give you advice for a smoke-free lifestyle, both before the procedure and after. Remember, it may not be easy to quit smoking, but it can be done. Especially if the prize at the end of the road is one smoking’ hot body!
