How long in advance do I stop taking 15 mg of Phentermine before smart lipo of outer thighs, hips and back?

hi, I tell my patients to stop taking phentermine at least 1 week prior to surgery. Phentermine is a stimulant which can make anesthesia more difficult.

Medications fall into categories regarding their effects on surgery: bad for surgery, not bad for surgery, and unknown/questionable. Phentermine falls into the latter. Any medication on which data is lacking or inconclusive regarding safety in surgery is best avoided for a reasonable time interval before surgery.

Medications such as Phentermine should be held two weeks prior to liposuction. I suggest consulting with your physician prior to treatment and following his/her requests regarding medication administration. Best, Dr. Emer

Thanks for your question. The issue with Phenteramine is that as soon as the anesthesiologist puts you to sleep, your blood pressure can drop to dangerously low levels and its difficult to elevate your blood pressure. Since most surgery performed for cosmetic reasons is done in a outpatient center, any issue can buy you an ambulance ride to the ER. For that reason, many anesthesiologists will not put anyone to sleep if they have not stopped Phenteramine for at least two weeks. Your safety is everyones first priority. Hope this helps

Part of it depends on whether you are being sedated or having anesthesia, you will need to be off 2 weeks for the anesthetist.  The reason is phentermine can suppress your natural ability to regulate your blood pressure, causing a dangerous situation with some medications.If you are just going to be under local, I agree that 2 days is probably adequate, and I would not re-start for 2-5 days but go by your physicians instructions.