Smoking and surgery
Surgery - quitting smoking; Surgery - quitting tobacco; Wound healing - smokingQuitting smoking and other nicotine products, including e-cigarettes, before surgery can improve your recovery and outcome after surgery.
Quitting smoking
There are many ways to quit smoking. There are also resources to help you. Family members, friends, and co-workers may be supportive. But to be su...
Read Article Now Book Mark ArticleMost people who successfully quit smoking have tried and failed many times. Don't give up. Learning from your past tries can help you succeed.
There Are Many Reasons to Quit Smoking
Tar, nicotine, and other chemicals from smoking can increase your risk for many health problems. These include heart and blood vessel problems, such as:
- Blood clots and aneurysms in the brain, which can lead to strokes
Blood clots
Blood clots are clumps that occur when blood hardens from a liquid to a solid. A blood clot that forms inside one of your veins or arteries is calle...
Read Article Now Book Mark ArticleAneurysms in the brain
An aneurysm is a weak area in the wall of a blood vessel that causes the blood vessel to bulge or balloon out. When an aneurysm occurs in a blood ve...
Read Article Now Book Mark ArticleStrokes
A stroke occurs when blood flow to a part of the brain stops. A stroke is sometimes called a "brain attack. " If blood flow is cut off for longer th...
Read Article Now Book Mark Article - Coronary artery disease, including chest pain (angina) and heart attacks
Angina
Angina is a type of chest discomfort or pain due to poor blood flow through the blood vessels (coronary vessels) of the heart muscle (myocardium). T...
Read Article Now Book Mark ArticleHeart attacks
Most heart attacks are caused by a blood clot that blocks one of the coronary arteries. The coronary arteries bring blood and oxygen to the heart. ...
Read Article Now Book Mark Article - High blood pressure
- Poor blood supply to the legs
- Problems with erections
Problems with erections
An erection problem occurs when a man cannot get or keep an erection that is firm enough for intercourse. You may not be able to get an erection at ...
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Smoking also increases your risk for different types of cancer, including cancer of the:
Cancer
Cancer is the uncontrolled growth of abnormal cells in the body. Cancerous cells are also called malignant cells.
Read Article Now Book Mark Article- Lungs
- Mouth
- Larynx
- Esophagus
- Bladder
- Kidneys
- Pancreas
- Cervix
Smoking leads to lung problems, such as emphysema and chronic bronchitis. Smoking also makes asthma harder to control.
Emphysema and chronic bronchitis
Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is a common lung disease. Having COPD makes it hard to breathe. There are two main forms of COPD:Chroni...
Read Article Now Book Mark ArticleAsthma
Asthma is a chronic disease that causes the airways of the lungs to swell and narrow. It leads to breathing difficulty such as wheezing, shortness o...
Read Article Now Book Mark ArticleSome smokers switch to smokeless tobacco instead of quitting tobacco completely. But using smokeless tobacco still carries health risks, such as:
- Developing mouth or nasal cancer
- Gum problems, tooth wear, and cavities
- Worsening high blood pressure and chest pain
How Smoking Affects Surgery
Smokers who have surgery have a higher chance than nonsmokers of blood clots forming in their legs. These clots may travel to and damage the lungs.
Smoking decreases the amount of oxygen that reaches the cells in your surgical wound. As a result, your wound may heal more slowly and is more likely to become infected.
All smokers carry an increased risk for heart and lung problems. Even when your surgery goes smoothly, smoking causes your body, heart, and lungs to work harder than if you did not smoke.
Making the Decision to Quit
Most health care providers will tell you to stop using cigarettes and tobacco at least 4 weeks before your surgery. Stretching the time between quitting smoking and your surgery out to at least 10 weeks can decrease your risk for problems even more. Like any addiction, quitting tobacco is difficult. There are many ways to quit smoking and many resources to help you, such as:
Ways to quit smoking
There are many ways to quit smoking. There are also resources to help you. Family members, friends, and co-workers may be supportive. But to be su...
Read Article Now Book Mark Article- Family members, friends, and coworkers may be supportive or encouraging.
- Talk to your provider about medicines, such as nicotine replacement and prescription medicines.
Nicotine replacement
Nicotine replacement therapy is a treatment to help people stop smoking. It uses products that supply low doses of nicotine. These products do not ...
Read Article Now Book Mark Article - If you join a smoking cessation program, you have a much better chance of success. Such programs are offered by hospitals, health departments, community centers, and work sites.
Smoking cessation program
It is hard to quit smoking if you are acting alone. Smokers usually have a much better chance of quitting with a support program. Stop smoking prog...
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Using nicotine gum around the time of surgery is not encouraged. The nicotine will still interfere with the healing of your surgical wound and have the same effect on your general health as using cigarettes and tobacco.
References
McEvoy MD, Blitz JD, Borgmeier E. Perioperative medicine. In: Pardo MC, ed. Miller's Basics of Anesthesia. 8th ed. Philadelphia, PA: Elsevier; 2023:chap 42.
Yepuri N, Pruekprasert N, Cooney RN. Surgical complications. In: Townsend CM Jr, Beauchamp RD, Evers BM, Mattox KL, eds. Sabiston Textbook of Surgery. 21st ed. St Louis, MO: Elsevier; 2022:chap 12.
Review Date: 9/30/2024
Reviewed By: Linda J. Vorvick, MD, Clinical Professor, Department of Family Medicine, UW Medicine, School of Medicine, University of Washington, Seattle, WA. Also reviewed by David C. Dugdale, MD, Medical Director, Brenda Conaway, Editorial Director, and the A.D.A.M. Editorial team.