What if I Smoke a Little Will It Affect a Breast Reduction?

Most experts unanimously agree that smoking increases the rate of breast augmentation surgical complications significantly. Just about all plastic surgeons strongly recommend women to stop smoking and all nicotine products well in advance of breast augmentation with breast implants. Many plastic surgeons recommend stopping all tobacco products several months prior to surgery.Here is the reason why: the nicotine in cigarettes and other tobacco products (including Nicorette gum, patches, etc) is a vasoconstrictor, meaning it makes the Smoking is a significant multiplier of many potential complications following surgery and breast augmentation with implants are no exception. Nicotine from smoking causes blood vessels to vasoconstrict ( tighten up). Over time, these constricted arteries and capillaries deliver less blood to the breast tissue which is needed for normal healing. Smokers therefore have an increased incidence of higher likelihood of complications such as infection, and in particular capsular contracture (hardening and distortion of the implants). General complications of surgery such as blood clots, anesthetic problems such as pneumonia are also increased. A scientific article in the Archives of Internal Medicine indicated that, among all forms of surgery, quitting smoking eight weeks prior was never associated with an increased risk of complications.In young patients you will probably statistically avoid these complications, why tempt fate by increasing your odds that something bad will happen.On a long term basis, smoking also causes accelerated aging of the skin and loss of elasticity. Hopefully these reasons will help give you the will power and courage to stop smoking.

Thank you for your question. Smoking before or after your surgery can increase your risk of developing complications including infection and wound healing problems. I tell my patients that it is ideal to stop a couple months ahead of surgery and then for a couple months after surgery.

Hello! Thank you for your question! The issue with nicotine is that it
also acts as a vasoconstrictor, clamping down of blood vessels. Blood
supply is always of great concern during any surgical procedure, but
especially in such a procedure as a breast reduction where the viability of the
nipple-areolar complex is obviously important. Since the vascularity to
the area is already tenuous since it will be raised by cutting around
the area, maximizing blood flow to the tissue is critical. Typically,

we recommend at least 6 weeks of smoking cessation prior to and at
least 6 weeks after any surgical procedure. The longer, the better.
Nicotine always increases the risk for infection, nipple necrosis, poor
scarring, and
wound complications, as well as other health consequences including blood clots. The
anesthesia risk is greater with general anesthesia as well as pulmonary
issues/lung infections postoperatively. I would
discuss this with your surgeon prior to your procedure. Hope that this
helps! Best wishes!

-Cigarette smoke contains nicotine which can adversely affect the flow of oxygenated blood.  This decrease in oxygen can cause problems with wound healing after surgery. 

-Sometimes nicotine can even cause a patient to lose the skin of the nipple or areola after breast surgery in which an incision has been made around the areola.  The decrease in blood flow due to the surgical incision, coupled with the effect that nicotine has on blood flow, is just too much sometimes for the nipple and/or areola to handle..

-Because of the negative effect smoking can have on healing after breast surgery, I ask all patients to quit smoking for 6 weeks prior to surgery.

Nicotine closes the blood vessels that bring oxygenated blood to the tissues. Oxygen fights infection, helps to keep tissue alive and delivers important medications such as antibiotics. I require my patients to be smoke free for two weeks before and two weeks after surgery, but prefer a month. Good luck!

Even a little smoking can lead to huge irreversible problems with breast reduction. You can reduce your risk of breast reduction complications by stopping smoking at least 4 weeks before surgery, and ideally, never restarting. This will do more for your health than breast reduction. Cigarettes are poison, so no amount is ok.

Even one dose of nicotine, whether from tobacco, gum, or a patch will cause constriction of blood vessels. When a breast reduction is done, because of the way the skin has to be shaped around the smaller breast, the circulation is temporarily reduced. Add the effect of nicotine and blood flow can be cut off completely, causing significant wound healing problems. It just isn't worth the risk.

Here are the major points of smoking Tobacco or Marijuana before or after surgery:1. There is nicotine in tobacco, but not in marijuana. However, most joints are rolled with marijuana and tobacco combination. Nicotine is a vasoconstrictor that decreases blood flow to the tissues. This is the major problems that can cause a very bad outcome in some surgeries. In a breast augmentation, there is not a lot of risk as there are not a lot of incisions which decrease blood flow to the tissues. In a breast lift or tummy tuck, on the other hand, there is much longer and more involved incisions. The decrease in blood flow to the tissues in combination with the decrease in blood flow from the nicotine can cause tissue to die. This can cause part of the breast or nipple, or in the case of a tummy tuck, part of the belly tissue to die, resulting in a very bad outcome. This is especially bad in breast reductions or face lifts. In a rhinoplasty the tip of the nose and the columella, the area between the tip and the lip, is at risk. Your skin and tissue can turn black and fall off if this happens. Marijuana without tobacco does not cause this problem, or marijuana in an edible fashion. Vaporizers do not decrease the amount of nicotine in tobacco, only decrease the smoke. Hookah also does not decrease nicotine.2. There is carbon monoxide in both tobacco smoke and marijuana smoke. Carbon monoxide decreases the oxygen carrying capacity of hemoglobin in the blood. This is different from the vasoconstrictor effect, but has the same result of having the risk of tissue death in conjunction with surgeries that decrease the blood flow to tissues such as breast lifts and tummy tucks, as opposed to an augmentation alone that does not decrease blood flow to as great of an extent. Again, edible forms of marijuana do not have smoke, and thus carbon monoxide poisoning.3. Coughing. Both tobacco and marijuana smoke disrupt the lining of the lungs and bronchi and can lead to coughing episodes. Coughing episodes can lead to internal bleeding after surgery that can lead to hematomas and complications, and again a bad outcome. Again, edible forms of marijuana does not have this effect.4. Anesthesia effects. Marijuana can have drug interactions with certain anesthetic drugs. Thus it is important to tell your anesthesiologist about your marijuana use.In conclusion, Smoking, whether it be tobacco or marijuana, is detrimental to your surgery outcome. Edible marijuana is much less so, but be honest about your use with your surgeon and anesthesiologist so that you can have the best outcome. In general, you should quite smoking many weeks, ideally 6 weeks before surgery, and not smoke for at least 2 weeks after surgery.Best wishes,Pablo Prichard, MD

Smoking impacts wound healing and should be avoided especially with a  breast reduction.

It's not worth the risk to have a breast reduction if you are a smoker.  Breast reduction is one of those operations that really stress the blood supply (facelift and tummy tuck are other examples).  If your blood vessels are unhealthy and they are because you smoke, you are at a much increased risk of poor healing which can result in skin necrosis, fat necrosis, lousy scars, bad shape etc. 

Do yourself a favor and quit smoking for good and then have your breast reduction. 

I will sometimes have patients come in who are smokers who say they are willing to risk it and I tell them that I'm not!  Smoking can turn a routine operation into a disaster.