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Postpone Laser Resurfacing and Facelift for Smoker?

asked 2 years ago by gypsygirl in maryland
Latest answer by Larry S. Nichter, MD, MS
Question viewed 1,845 times
Tags: face, upper eyelids, female, risk, skin, smoking

I'm due to have Laser resurfacing, upper eyes and a lower Facelift in 1 week. I have smoked 2 cigarettes a day for the last week. Should I postpone my surgery?

For the last 6 weeks, I had cut my smoking from 1 pack to 2-6 cigarettes a day and as I said this last week I've had 2 cigs a day. I hopefully plan on smoking no more prior to surgery.

16 answers to Postpone Laser Resurfacing and Facelift for Smoker?

Surgery and smoking

You should not smoke before your surgery, particularly before a facelift. Even seemingly little smoking can shrink down blood vessels, reduce blood supply, and can cause terrible scarring or loss of skin. The risk of infection is also higher. You should be honest with your doctor (I hope you are not my preop patient!) and tell them so they can help you quit.

Brent Moelleken, MD
Beverly Hills Plastic Surgeon

Quit smoking prior to Fraxel resurfacing

If you are having Fraxel Repair it would be much better to quit smoking first. It is good if you can before Restore, but not as important. We don't have statistics, but I'm sure many people undergoing even Fraxel Repair have smoked and done well, but if there have been complications related to smoking it is not known yet. It is always best, prior to an elective procedure for cosmetic gain, to do whatever you can to ensure a good and healthy outcome.

Ronald Shelton, MD
Manhattan Dermatologist

Smoking and Facelift

My answer is: yes, you should definitely postpone your surgery. Smoking exposes you to a number of harmful chemicals including nicotine and carbon monoxide. Nicotine acts to shut off blood supply to the tiny vessels that supply your skin and carbon monoxide diminishes your red blood cell's oxygen carrying capacity. The summary of these effects in a Facelift patient who is a smoker: dramatically increased chances of skin loss and hypertrophic (wide scarring) scarring. If you combine... more

Stephen Prendiville, MD
Fort Myers Facial Plastic Surgeon

www.drprendiville.com

You should listen to your surgeon and do what is recommended

You should listen to your surgeon and do what is recommended. Smoking is a very real risk and not to be taken lightly. You may need to delay your procedure or they may have to take a more conservative approach.

Sonia Badreshia-Bansal, MD
San Francisco Dermatologic Surgeon

www.elitemdspa.com

Smoking and Facelift

YES! You should stop smoking atleast 2 weeks before surgery. The longer you stop the better. Not even 1 cigarette during that timeline. I would also recommend no nicotine gum or patches as they have similar affects on the blood vessels as does the smoking. You will have wound healing problems if you continue to smoke and have your surgery.

Farbod Esmailian, MD
Orange County Plastic Surgeon

Never take risks that could be avoided when having plastic surgery

Hi there- Let's take a big step back from the trees for a minute and look at the forrest... You are pursuing an improvement in your appearance, on an elective basis... In other words, it's not as though the operation is necessary to cure you of some disease or prolong your life... in which case the risk of having surgery while still smoking would be more acceptable. Furthermore, all surgery will have risks, even under the very best of circumstances- and it is ALWAYS in your best interests to mak more

Armando Soto, MD
Orlando Plastic Surgeon

Lower Facelift and Laser Resurfacing

Hi, I would NOT recommend laser resurfacing and facelifting at the same time in a smoker. There is a real risk for skin necrosis ( death of the skin flap) at the site of the incisions. I also insist that all of my patients that smoke stop smoking 2 weeks prior and 2 weeks after a facelift. Hope this helps. Best, Dr.S.

Oleh Slupchynskyj, MD
New York Facial Plastic Surgeon

Smoking Dangerous for Facelift patients

Ask your surgeon, but if you were my patient, I would request that you postpone your surgery. Most experts unanimously agree that smoking increases the risk of most surgical complications significantly. This especially applies to lifting procedures such as the temple lift you are scheduled to have done. Just about all plastic surgeons strongly recommend women to stop smoking and all nicotine products well in advance of all plastic surgery and especially lift procedures.. Many... more

Larry S. Nichter, MD, MS
Orange County Plastic Surgeon

Smoking compromises surgical healing

Smoking is a real problem for facelift patients for a couple of reasons. Proper healing requires healthy blood supply and oxygen delivery to the healing tissues, both of which are compromised with smoking. Nicotine is a vasoconstriction agent that can cut off blood supply to the skin causing the tissue along the incision line to die. This results in very poor healing. The second issue regarding smoking is that there is a much higher carbon monoxide component in smokers than non-smokers. ... more

William Portuese, MD
Seattle Facial Plastic Surgeon

Smoking a bad idea prior to surgery

Many physicians may require that you take a test that will let them know whether or not you have been smoking, and they may cancel your surgery if they find that you haven't told the truth. In my practice, I require known smokers to sign a smoking advisory consent form. Smoking, as everyone knows, wreaks absolute havoc on your body and can especially impair healing post-surgery, which is not a time when you want to be impairing your body's ability to heal itself. Also, there can be an... more

Deason Dunagan, MD
Huntsville Plastic Surgeon

You should quit smoking before having facelift and laser resurfacing

It is a well known fact that smoking increases complications for surgery, including surgery on the face. Laser resurfacing at the same time as facelift procedure increases the incidence of wound healing complications more than if the procedures are done separately with time to heal in between. While the risk of combined procedures is small enough in non smokers, I would not recommend doing both simultaneously in a smoker.

Elizabeth Lee, MD
Bay Area Plastic Surgeon

Smoking and surgery

Smoking is a no no! Smoking increases the risk of complications. Some reports suggest taht this is 50% greater than the general population that does not smoke. You should stop 3-4 weeks before and continue for 3-4 weeks after surgery.

Steven Wallach, MD
Manhattan Plastic Surgeon

If you smoke immediately prior to elective surgery, you will likely compromise your results

I have counted the 8 previous responses who essentially unequivocally advise you to refrain from tobacco use prior to surgery and to postpone the surgery. So it is up to you to now do the right thing.

Otto Joseph Placik, MD
Chicago Plastic Surgeon

Do quit smoking before facelift surgery

You will have to discuss postponement with your plastic surgeon and let him or her make the final decision. The reasons for quitting are explained well in the previous replies, but I want to emphasize that even one cigarette after surgery is enough to do permanent damage so it's "all or none" as far as smoking is concerned. So hopefully planning is not the same as quitting. Just do it!

Richard Baxter, MD
Seattle Plastic Surgeon

Smoking and facelifting

It is important in my opinion to stop smoking for at least three weeks prior and three weeks after surgery to avoid one of the most dreaded complications of facelifting which is skin necrosis or loss of skin due to vascular compromise from nicotine. Also, it is a good idea to quit smoking since that is the primary cause of wrinkles. The relative risk of skin loss in smokers is 12.5 x that of non-smokers. I hope this information helps.

Scott Trimas, MD
Jacksonville Facial Plastic Surgeon

Risks of smoking

The correct answer is yes, postpone your surgery until you are completely off the cigarettes. The nicotine can contribute to healing and blood flow problems leading to disastrous complications. You wouldn't want to kick yourself after surgery if you get a complication and you were still smoking.