smoking and surgery

what does smoking have to do with weight loss surgery? how long should you have quit before you have WLS?

Some of the nurses here can probably answer this better than I can,  but I do recall my surgeon saying no smoking for a full month prior to surgery and then never again.  I quit smoking 6 years ago, so I didn't quiz him too hard on the whys and what ifs, but a friend of mine recently posted on facebook about his thoughts going out to his cousin's family.  Someone on the thread asked what was wrong and my friend's cousin chimed in with this:

my sister was rushed to the hospital this morning had to have an emergency surgery. i guess she had a ulcer on her intestine ad it ruptured due to smoking after her gastric bypass surgery 2 months ago

So there's that.  I'm sure there's also something about the risk of pneumonia post-op that most likely increases if you've been smoking, but like I said, no doubt there are others here who'd know more about it than I would.

wow. thats scary! im not a habitual smoker. just one and off bout 1 pack a week here and there depending on how stressed i am at school etc. i quit for 3 months then started back up 1 months and now i quit again a couple weeks ago and i wont have surgery for another 4 weeks. and i definitely wont anymore after my surgery. so i should be fine. i see the pulmonologist tomrrow so..

My doc said insurance companies won't pay for WLS if you have other unhealthy habits like drinking and smoking.  I did not ask much because I quit smoking years ago and I rarely drink. 

It is my understanding that your healing process is MUCH slower if you smoke.  I think they want you to heal that staple line as fast as possible and that is why they make you quit.  I quit two weeks prior to surgery (cuz that's all the lead time I had from consulation to surgery date) and then another 6 weeks after, but I'm an idiot and went back to it.  I know that I need to quit again and plan to do so soon.  I healed up great from VSG but I had started back smoking and when it was deemed that I needed a full hysterectomy at 5 months out from VSG, the doc didn't say anything about my smoking so I just kept on.  I noticed that I healed much slower after the hysterectomy versus the VSG and I think that was why...good luck and I hope you do better than me on this one...

Deb

I am in the middle of quitting so I did ask questions. It isn't just smoking. It is all nicotine including patches and gum. The reason is nicotine causes blood vessels to restrict. This makes blood flow poor. Poor blood flow means poor healing and possible complications.

I personally quit 2 days before surgery...I know..I'm bad. But I was under a lot of other stress and it wasn't the right time to quit beforehand. I healed up very quickly (but not recommending handling it the way I did) and am currently using the E cigarette when I feel the need. It's wonderful. I now use nicotine free drops for it and do not have the urge to smoke. I was also prescribed Wellbutrin, which helped. Quit sooner than later, but I love my Esmoke! Good luck!

I think maybe you should quit at least a month before.

Reasons for this are: Smoking makes you heal slower. Smoking increases the risk of DVT which is one of the potential complications after surgery (why we have to walk and wear compression stockings). We are also at risk for pneumonia after surgery. Smokers are at a higher risk of developing pneumonia.  Smoking paralyzes the cilia  in our airways and that's why smokers get that cough because they have to work harder to get the "gunk" out. Smoking increases the risk of stomach cancer.

I am not trying to get on your case or sound like a public service ad (my boyfriend's a smoker).. Just explaining why it is better to quit at least before the surgery and while you are healing. Good luck!

thanks everyone so much for the advice

My surgeon says 6 months of no smoking before he will even consider you as a patient.