{"id":15365,"date":"2026-02-27T10:39:11","date_gmt":"2026-02-27T09:39:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/resetlaser.com\/smoking-before-and-after-surgery-why-quitting-is-your-best-ally-for-your-health\/"},"modified":"2026-02-27T10:56:52","modified_gmt":"2026-02-27T09:56:52","slug":"smoking-before-and-after-surgery-why-quitting-is-your-best-ally-for-your-health","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/resetlaser.com\/en\/smoking-before-and-after-surgery-why-quitting-is-your-best-ally-for-your-health\/","title":{"rendered":"Smoking before and after surgery: why quitting is your best ally for your health"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t
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Smoking before and after surgery: why quitting is your best ally for your health<\/h1>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t
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Being told you need surgery\u2014whether planned or urgent, cosmetic or life-saving\u2014often triggers significant stress. For a smoker, this stress frequently leads to increased tobacco use. Yet medical science is unequivocal: <\/span>smoking before and after surgery<\/b> greatly increases the risk of serious complications.<\/span><\/p>

Today, more and more surgeons make the success of their procedure conditional on completely stopping smoking several weeks before the big day. In this article, we will explore in depth why cigarettes are the number one enemy of your recovery after surgery and how to optimise your care pathway <\/span>by quitting smoking<\/span><\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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The immediate physiological impact: the fight for oxygen<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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The first danger of cigarettes during surgery lies in <\/span>oxygen transport<\/b> in your blood.<\/span><\/p>

Carbon monoxide: a silent poison<\/span><\/h3>

When you smoke, you inhale <\/span>carbon monoxide (CO)<\/b>. This gas has an affinity for haemoglobin (the protein that carries oxygen) 200 times greater than oxygen itself. In other words, <\/span> CO takes the place of oxygen in your red blood cells<\/b>. For a smoking client about to undergo surgery, this means their organs and tissues are already <\/span>in a state of under-oxygenation (hypoxia)<\/b> even before the surgeon begins the operation.<\/span><\/p>

The challenges of anaesthesia<\/span><\/h3>

The anaesthetist-intensivist must <\/span>maintain perfect oxygenation of your vital organs <\/b> while you are asleep. In a smoker, this task is more complex. The <\/span>heart has to beat faster<\/b> and<\/span> blood pressure rises <\/b> to compensate for the poor quality of the blood. In addition, tobacco irritates the bronchi and increases the production of secretions, which can cause respiratory complications (coughing, laryngeal spasms) after the operation, at the time of waking or extubation. <\/span><\/p>

Healing: the risk of necrosis and wound dehiscence<\/span><\/h2>

<\/span>Healing<\/b> is undoubtedly the most critical issue for surgeons, particularly in plastic, cosmetic or orthopaedic surgery, when the client smokes<\/span><\/p>

Nicotine-induced vasoconstriction<\/span><\/h3>

Nicotine is a powerful <\/span>vasoconstrictor<\/b>: it <\/span>reduces the diameter of small blood vessels <\/b> (capillaries). For a wound to heal, it needs a <\/span> massive influx of fresh blood loaded with oxygen and nutrients<\/b>. By smoking after the operation, you are literally cutting off the supply to your scar.<\/span><\/p>

The visible consequences of tobacco on healing<\/span><\/h3>