Want Great Plastic Surgery Results? Stop Smoking Now!

If you’re a smoker undergoing surgery you’re at much greater risk of complication.

That’s why we advise all patients to stop smoking at least three weeks ahead of surgery and three weeks after, but it’s not just traditional cigarettes that should be avoided – all nicotine products can sabotage your results.

“Vaping” still risky

E-cigarettes have become increasingly popular and because they don’t involve burning tobacco many people believe them to be the “safe” way to smoke.

Patients tell us they have stopped smoking when in fact they have simply switched to e-cigs. Others will have turned to nicotine gum or patches to cope with the cravings and believe this also constitutes having “given up”. Unfortunately this is not the case.

While there is still nicotine in your body you are at an increased risk of blood clots, small vessel damage, infection and complications with wound healing. That’s because nicotine increases the level of a pituitary hormone called vasopressin, which causes tightened blood vessels and inhibits blood flow.

Good blood flow is essential for carrying oxygen and haemoglobin to injured tissues, so this results in poorer and more prolonged healing.

What’s more, sluggish white blood cells become less effective at fighting pathogens, increasing the risk of the wound becoming infected.

Nicotine poses even greater risk in plastic surgery

Patients undergoing any type of surgery are advised to quit nicotine, but it’s especially important for those having a cosmetic procedure such as a facelift, tummy tuck or breast lift.

The way the incisions are made for this type of surgery differ to, say an appendectomy or disc operation. In the latter, the surgeon will cut straight down through multiple layers of skin, tissue and muscle. On the other hand, for a procedure where the aim is to lift and tighten the skin, the incisions made are more similar to filleting a fish.

The surgeon will dissect down to a layer without blood vessels and detach the skin from the underlying muscles. Once the skin has been lifted, it can be pulled, stretched, moved around, and removed.

During this process normal blood flow is restricted so it’s important the remaining blood flow is sufficiently oxygenated. Skin, fat and muscle all need oxygen to survive – that’s why smokers are at greater risk of skin and fat necrosis.

Read more: 10 aftercare tips to improve the results of your cosmetic surgery

How nicotine constricts blood flow

If you’ve ever tried sucking a thick milkshake through a thin straw you’ll understand the effect constricted blood vessels have on blood flow. Nicotine causes the blood vessels to shrink down and tighten making it harder for blood cells to pass through. 

In turn, this means less oxygen circulating the body and that can lead to tissue death. Wound healing can be delayed, scarring can be worse and even pain levels during recovery can be higher.

More serious complications can include stroke, heart attack, blood clots, and pneumonia. One study found smokers have a 77% higher risk of heart attack after surgery than non-smokers.

Smoke brings extra complications

The blood flow issues presented by nicotine are further compounded by the carbon monoxide present in cigarette smoke. Smoking cigarettes also makes anesthesia more complicated.

Smoke paralyses cilia, the little hair-like structures in the lungs that help move out debris. Consequently, debris stays in the lungs, meaning smokers’ lungs don’t work as well as non-smokers.

Anesthesiologists have to work harder to keep smokers breathing while under anesthesia and it is more likely that breathing apparatus will have to be used post-surgery.  

Even secondary smoke can have a significant impact, so anyone undergoing or recovering from surgery should avoid enclosed spaces where people are smoking. 

Read more: 8 ways to help prepare your body prior to cosmetic surgery

Stop now and reap the benefits

The sooner you stop any nicotine intake the better. Even if you only have a few weeks to go before your surgery it can make a big difference.

In one study of general surgery patients, quitting smoking for three or four weeks before surgery reduced the complication rate from about 40% to 20%.

And we know you’ll be nervous before going into the operating theatre, but resist the urge for a quick cigarette and chew some gum instead!

Got questions about cosmetic surgery? Explore our website or contact OceanClinic Marbella.

Science Celebrates Success of Incredible Face Transplant Surgery

The boundaries of plastic surgery are always being pushed and remarkable achievements continue to be made. One of the most exciting is the successful face transplant carried out recently in the United Sates.

Credit: NYU Langone Medical Center

Burns victim Patrick Hardison received an entire new face, donated by a 26-year-old bike mechanic who’d been killed in a cycling accident. 

It was the most extensive face transplant ever attempted and the surgery took 26 hours.

The surgery was carried out in 2015 and 18 months on Patrick continues to do well, even though doctors believed he only had a 50% chance of surviving the procedure.

Although a number of face transplants have been carried out since Frenchwoman Isabelle Dinoire received the world’s first in 2005, no one had successfully transplanted as much face and scalp tissue before.

Patrick was 27-years-old when he suffered a massive burn injury to his face, which destroyed his ears, lips, eyelids, hair and most of his nose. 

He had to wait 14 years for the face transplant surgery, during which time he had become very depressed, lost his business and his wife.

He had already undergone a staggering 71 procedures to improve the look and function of his face but the aesthetic result was far removed from his original appearance. Consequently, he never left the house without a baseball cap and sunglasses. Patrick had also been warned that he would soon go blind due to having no eyelids.

The groundbreaking face transplant required surgeons to attach a new scalp, ears, nose, and eyelids as well as facial bones and muscles. The surgery involved a team of 100 doctors and nurses, led by Dr. Eduardo Rodreiguez at New York University's Langone Medical Center.

Watch the surgery:

Dr. Rodreiguez said the success of the surgery was remarkable, with Patrick so far being able to avoid any rejection of the new face by his body, although he remains on powerful immunosuppression drugs.

“Patrick’s case is pivotal for the face transplant program at NYU Langone,” says Dr. Rodreiguez. “The ability to avoid any rejection episode within the first 12 months I think is really remarkable. The fact that he’s also the recipient of the most extensive soft tissue face transplant performed in the world, it’s something that now we can predictably do and can be done very safely.”

The surgery has transformed Patrick’s life and enabled him to do normal activities, such as going swimming with his children, for the first time since his injury.

See Patrick a year after surgery:

First US Penis Transplant

Another incredible transplant surgery carried out in the States last year was a penis transplant given to a 64-year-old man who had his amputated after developing penile cancer.

The organ was donated by a younger, deceased man and was painstakingly attached to Thomas Manning during a 15-hour operation. The surgery was a success and means the patient can now urinate while standing and have sex.

It was the first penis transplant to take place in the US, following a penis transplant carried out in South Africa in 2014. The recipient was a 21-year-old man who had lost his penis following a botched circumcision when he was 18.

It only took three months for the man to return to full sexual function and in 2015 he announced that he was to become a father.

The doctors behind the US penis transplant now plan to help young military veterans with severe pelvic injuries. More than 1,300 men aged under-35 lost all or part of their penises fighting in Iraq or Afghanistan during 2001-2013.

Suicide rates are exceptionally high in soldiers with severe damage to the genitals so a penis transplant can be lifesaving.

Reconstructive Surgery at Ocean Clinic Marbella

Alongside its cosmetic procedures, Ocean Clinic is proud to also offer reconstructive surgery. This includes scar revision, breast reconstruction following mastectomy and maxillofacial surgery for congenital defects and injury to the facial bone complex.

Ocean Clinic’s Head Surgeon Dr. Kaye is passionate about helping people suffering with disfigurements and has led two charitable reconstructive surgery missions to Peru and Kenya. He and his team operated on a total of 100 people with congenital malformations, tumours, burns, scars and other deformities. Read more about this work here.

For more information about reconstructive surgery at Ocean Clinic contact (+34) 951 775 518.

Want a New Nose? Choose the Oldest Form of Cosmetic Surgery

Thinking about getting that long dreamed of nose job in 2017? Nose surgery may seem very daunting but it’s one of the oldest forms of cosmetic surgery, dating back thousands of years.

There’s been a lot in the press recently about new non-surgical ways to change one’s nose shape. These include an uncomfortable plastic insert to alter the shape of the nostrils and nose tip, and liquid rhinoplasty, the so-called ‘lunch break nose job’, carried out using injectable fillers.

However, reticence about actually going under the knife means people using these tactics must put up with either discomfort or inferior results. For anyone truly unhappy with their nose, surgery will always be the best option.

There is a lot of fear and misunderstanding around rhinoplasty, but for experienced surgeons it’s a straightforward surgery with an extremely small risk of serious complication – they’ve been doing it for years; 2,600 years to be exact.

Rhinoplasty’s roots date back to 600 BC

Nose surgery is an ancient art first referenced in The Compendium of Suśruta, a Sanskrit text on medicine and surgery, written in 6^th century India.

The text was written by Sushruta, known today as the ‘Father of Plastic Surgery’, and includes historically unique chapters describing surgical training, instruments and procedures.

However, Sushruta’s innovations in nose surgery were motivated by necessity, as opposed to simply wanting to help patients change their appearance for cosmetic reasons.

Removal of noses (and ears) was a common punishment in wartime or for those who committed adultery or treason. Sushruta therefore developed a method to reconstruct damaged noses. His method involved removing flaps of skin from the forehead or cheek of the patient and using it to reconstruct the nose:

“The portion of the nose to be covered should be first measured with a leaf. Then, a piece of skin of the required size should be dissected from the living skin of the cheek, and turned back to cover the nose, keeping a small pedicle attached to the cheek.

“The part of the nose to which the skin is to be attached should be made raw, by cutting the nasal stump with a knife. The physician then should place the skin on the nose and stitch the two parts swiftly, keeping the skin properly elevated, by inserting two tubes of eranda (the castor-oil plant) in the position of the nostrils, so that the new nose has proper shape. The skin thus properly adjusted, it should then be sprinkled with a powder of liquorice, red sandal-wood, and barberry plant.”

Artificial noses were also used during the
16th and 17th centuries. Credit: Science
Museum London - CC BY-SA 2.0

Sushruta’s method was known to the ancient Romans, with the term ‘rhinoplasty’ derived from the Greek words 'Rhinos' and 'Plassein', meaning nose and shape.

However, the technique wasn’t embraced by Western medics until many years later, during the syphilis epidemic of the late 16^th century. Syphilis can destroy the soft tissue of the nose resulting in a gaping hole in the middle of the patient’s face. This could lead to severe social stigmatisation so suffers required treatment not just for the physical pain.

From reconstruction to refinement

Advancements in nose surgery continued throughout the 17^th and 18^th centuries, with the first rhinoplasties to decrease or increase the size of a patient’s nose seen in the 19^th century.

Jacques Joseph of Berlin developed techniques for performing nose-reduction rhinoplasty via internal incisions. Fellow German Johann Friedrich Dieffenbach was among the first surgeons to anaesthetise the patient before performing nose surgery.

In the United States, in 1887, John Orlando Roe wrote about using closed rhinoplasty to correct saddle nose deformities. And by 1902, a septoplasty procedure for correcting a deviated septum had been developed.

Read more: What makes a perfect nose?

In the 100 years that followed nose surgery grew in popularity, with cosmetic surgery embraced by the Hollywood stars of the 40s and 50s – Elizabeth Taylor, Dean Martin and Marilyn Monroe are all said to have had rhinoplasty surgery.

Rhinoplasty in the 1950s: 

Back then rhinoplasty was so expensive it was necessary to be a movie star or very wealthy to be able to afford it. Now, the techniques have been refined and refined, making it a simpler and safer surgery and bringing the cost down significantly.

Want to change your appearance with a tried and tested surgery? Consult a surgeon with years of experience in rhinoplasty by making an appointment with Dr. Kaye at Ocean Clinic Marbella.