Why Can't I Have Neck or Facelift as a Smoker?

Nicotine decreases the oxygen to tissues by vasoconstriction and therefore increases the risks of surgery to the areas operated on. You were lucky with your prior surgeries without complication. I would not suggest taking the risk with the facelift.

When one smokes, or uses tobacco, there is vascular constriction. Nicotine is a major vasoconstrictor. There are others in tobacco as well. Good wound healing is all about getting enough blood supply to the area. In a facelift operation the thickness of the flaps are thin, making the bloodflow even more important. The incision will also be put on some tension. Tension is the enemy of good wound healing, and coupled with decreased blood flow in smokers, finds the patient at higher risk of wound problems. The SMAS facelift technique is excellent, but the surgeon has to work with the tissues given. Our office does not do facelifts on smokers. Some respected colleagues still may do them, but usually the extent of the dissection is less. Please stop smoking, (for dozens of reasons). If the prospect of a facelift is a motivation to quit, then so be it.

   In a face and neck lift the amount of undermining with the impaired blood supply from the smoking puts the patient at risk for skin loss.  Kenneth Hughes, MD Los Angeles, CA