Archive for the ‘Health’ Category
The ABC’s of Vitamins in Plastic Surgery
Thursday, August 11th, 2011Many of my patients at Yager Esthetics are very into vitamins and supplements. In Spanish culture, they are a part of life since Rico Perez popularized them on television. What many people do not know is which ones are important for what reasons, and which to avoid before surgery.
Vitamin A is the heart of retin-A, a great product for skin rejuvenation. It must be avoided before skin care treatments such as peels, laser, and microdermabrasion. It also makes you more sensitive to the sun.
The B vitamins are great for overall health and energy. They can help in pregnancy, and for general well being.
I love vitamin C. It is essential for wound healing, and I recommend that my patients take extra in the weeks leading up to surgery. It is also an antioxidant, and I have several skin care products that feature it, such as Obagi C, and Skinmedica. It is hard to take too much.
Vitamin D is becoming more well understood for its protective effects on the heart. Hispanic skin is generally darker, and so the sun needed to absorb it does not penetrate as easily, and it is especially important to check your levels and supplement as needed.
Vitamin E is very popular, both as a cream and as a pill. It can sometimes irritate new scars, so I do not recommend it early after surgery for the scar. I also tell patients to AVOID it 2 weeks prior to surgery, as it can lead to more bruising due to its effects on circulation.
A little known vitamin is K. It is used for clotting, and can be helpful for redness of incisions, and small spider veins. In patients with easy bruising, it is important to consider adding this step.
So, know your vitamins and why they are important. They are medications, so tell your doctor if you take any supplement or vitamin other than a normal multivitamin capsule.
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Why Do I Have To Stop Smoking Before Plastic Surgery?
Monday, May 9th, 2011As a doctor, of course I believe that no one should ever smoke. There is no debate that smoking is harmful to your health and can cause cancer, emphysema, birth defects if you smoke while pregnant, and also trigger asthma.
As a board certified plastic surgeon, specializing in cosmetic plastic surgery, to stop smoking at least 3 weeks prior to your surgery is critical for obtaining the best esthetic results. I find that by explaining the reasons why smoking is harmful makes my patients more willing to quit.
The chemicals in cigarette (and marijuana) smoke can shrink small blood vessels, and lead to poor circulation. Any surgery that tightens skin such as facelift, breast lift, or tummy tuck, damages blood flow to the skin. Normally, healing will still occur due to the small vessels. In smokers, there is less of a reserve, and skin can literally die or fail to heal properly. As you might imagine, have a hole on your face, breast or stomach is not attractive.
Smoke also retards wound healing in general, and can affect scar quality. This is true even with second hand smoke, and I tell my patients whose spouses smoke to stay away from them while they smoke during the healing process.
Smokers also are at a higher risk of anesthesia complications, as they sometimes do not have proper lung function. Anesthesia requires exchange of gases through the lungs, and poor exchange can lead to poor outcomes.
Cosmetic plastic surgery is not life saving or is it ever an emergency. Because of that, at Yager Esthetics we need to reduce your risks as much as possible. Stopping smoking is so important in this process, and we encourage everyone to do so. Be safe and smart- lying to your doctor about not smoking can increase your risks even more, as the tightness of the pull during surgery is different for smokers as well.