Some plastic surgeons are beginning to refuse to work with patients who aren’t willing to give up their smoking habit before and after their cosmetic surgery procedure.  Dr. Vincent Giampapa, a board-certified plastic surgeon from Montclair, NJ recently told his patient Lisa Morrison who wanted a neck and eye lift to stop smoking before having her cosmetic surgery. 

This ban on smoking isn’t just limited to New Jersey plastic surgeons.  Plastic and cosmetic surgeons from around the country are starting to tell their patients that they must quit smoking for at least several weeks before and after most elective cosmetic surgeries. Patients who undergo plastic surgery often don’t think of smoking as being anymore harmful than any other activity, but there are now several studies that show how much smoking can adversely affect healing and recovery from any sort of surgery, including cosmetic surgery.

What does smoking do to your body when it’s recovering from plastic surgery?
People who smoke regularly or who are subjected to second-hand smoke on a regular basis are generally less healthy than their non-smoking peers even before surgery.  Years of smoking can permanently constrict blood vessels (a condition called  “vasoconstriction”) which makes healing a harder process and may contribute to smokers statistically having a higher rate of infection and respiratory complications due to anesthesia.

Smoking before or after plastic surgery leaves patients at risk for many healing problems, including increased change of infection, longer bruising times, possible scarring, sagging and even persistent pulmonary problems.  A large part of those complications are due to the way smoking restricts blood flow and oxygen to parts of the body that may need it the most – the parts that need to heal from the surgery.

Many plastic surgeons are also choosing the procedures they before on patients based on whether or not their patients are smokers.  The American Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS) reports that most plastic surgeons do not perform procedures involving skin flaps or skin separation on smokers because of the increased health risks and healing problems associated with smoking.

Plastic surgeons, such as New Jersey plastic surgeon Vincent Giampapa not only have their patients” health in mind, but also their own reputation.  It isn’t a good advertisement for their services if one of their patients is healing slowly, scarring or generally not feeling well for a long time after surgery. 

Plastic surgery patients are walking advertisements for their doctors and word of mouth is one of the best ways to find a plastic surgeon in New Jersey or anywhere else.