Cosmetic

For every plastic procedure there is a minimum age, which was regulated by FDA (U.S. Food and Drug Administration), it is a department of health and human services. What is the right age for the cosmetic surgery? – It is frequently asked question by people who are undergoing for cosmetic surgery, especially by teenagers. Different kinds of surgery (rhinoplasty, liposuction, breast augmentation, laser hair removal, laser eye surgery) requires a different minimum age.

Rhinoplasty

Cosmetic procedure of the nose can be performed on men and women of almost any age. But it is usually recommended that young people wait until facial growth is complete – about age 13 – 14 for girls or 14 – 15 for boys. There is no minimum age requirement for this procedure, however, surgeons normally prefer that the nose would be fully developed. Many teenagers will reconsider their desire to get plastic surgery as they get a little bit older and already mature.

Liposuction

There is no true age limit, but 17 nor 18 is the minimum age the surgeons would consider. An issue of psychological and emotional development in teenagers must be taken in consideration. It is well known that many teenagers, young women and men, suffer from distorted body images. Many surgeons prefer to try to allow their younger patients to view themselves differently. Still surgeons suggest counseling at psychologist for teenagers who are particularly obsessed with negative body images and to wait for the time when he/she will be likely candidate for liposuction , it means at age of 18. Liposuction and other cosmetic surgeries are becoming increasingly popular among teenagers. Fortunately, patients under 18 still only make up approximately 1% of all patients having liposuction performed.

Breast augmentation

The average age for breast augmentation is between 19 and 34 years of age. The FDA will not allow any cosmetic breast augmentation under age 18 (it is acceptable to do reconstructive and corrective surgery under 18 years old). If health allows, there is no age cut off.

Laser eye surgery

There is no strict age requirement. Glasses prescription remains relatively stable at age of 20-21. The key to being a good candidate is that your glasses and/or contact lens prescription should be relatively stable. LASIK is safe for teens, but it is not recommended for most teenagers. It is best to have LASIK only when the eyes have stopped changing, which is frequently in the very late teenage years or during at ge of 20. If LASIK have been done before the eyes stop changing, patient will need to come back and have further LASIK after the eyes stop changing.

Laser hair removal

Although it is safe for people of all ages, professionals don’t recommend that teenagers undergo laser hair removal , because their system of hair growth is not fully developed. The laser removes what is present, but it doesn’t prevent hair systems still in the making from regenerating.. Better to wait a few years to reap the full benefits.

Most of us know what the risk of smoking is and even more there are certain situations when risk is more dangerous than usual. One of these situations is smoking before surgery. The latest studies at the Medical College of Wisconsin have shown that smoking before surgery can minify blood flow to the heart. Harvey J. Woehlk, M.D., found that those who smoked during the last 24 hours before outpatient surgery with general anesthesia were having episodes of inadequate oxygen supply to the heart 20 time more than those who were non-smokers, ex-smokers.

Smoking can damaged heart if untreated. Dr. Woehlck says: "General anesthesia and surgery cause stress.There is the possibility of pain, changes in blood pressure, loss of blood, and other events that occur during surgery." These episodes of inadequate oxygen supply to the heart in patients who were taken part in the study lasted only a few minutes because they were being observed. "We were able to reduce cardiac workload with medications and avoid problems in these patients. If this goes untreated for 20 to 30 minutes it can begin to damage the heart muscle, similar to the damaged that occurs during a heart attack.” Dr. Woehlck and the researchers in this study observed 740 patients under the age 65. Of those who participated in the study, 274 were smokers, and 67 of the smokers had smoked before surgery, despite the order to resist from smoking prior to their surgery. Dr. Woehlck says that people prefer to have outpatient surgery, instead of being hospitalizated, and thus have access to cigarettes before their surgery. This can cause bad decisions – despite warnings against it, nevertheless some patients do smoke shortly before their procedure. Dr. Woehlck warns "Don’t smoke before surgery." And also notes that smoking is an unhealthy habit, and when it is combined with the stress of surgery, it can be doubly hazardous. "You can do one thing wrong and maybe get away with it. If you do two things wrong at the same time, it will catch up with you,” says Dr. Woehlck.

Quitting

Cigarette smoking remains the main preventable cause of death in the United States, accounting for approximately 1 of every 5 deaths (440,000 people) each year. Coronary heart disease, cancer (all types) can be caused by smoking.

According to researchers patients can help themselves to improve their results after surgery if they are nonsmokers or have stopped smoking. Results after surgery were significantly better for people who never smoked and for those who stopped smoking than for smokers.

The problem is that smoking reduces the amount of oxygen available to the cell for healing. It happens when the small blood vessels shrink, the amount of hemoglobin available to move oxygen around the body and by interfering with the special chemicals that allow the release of oxygen to the cells reduces. There is some evidence that smoking in those around you – second hand smoke – may also delay healing or cause problems. Most doctors prefer that their patients would stop smoking for several weeks before surgery. Unfortunately, the use of nicotine gum is helpless around the time of surgery. The nicotine can interfere with healing in the same way as nicotine in cigarettes. Smoking crosses with healing because it reduces the blood flow to the cell the ability of hemoglobin to move oxygen and finally it reduces the amount of oxygen released to the cells.

Smoking and liposuction

For general health reasons, it is recommended that all patients stop smoking. It is obvious that smoking increases the risk for developing for such deseases as cancer (all sorts), breathing problems (emphysema) and circulatory problems, heart attacks are also linked to smoking. Smoking can increase the risk of coughing after the surgery. This can lead to unwanted bleeding. As it was mentioned smoking reduces blood flow that can result in skin loss during the healing period. These problems can destroy the results of liposuction and lead to revision surgery. It is always best to stop smoking. Smoking delays healing and can cause skin’s death leaving bad scars. Doctors prefer their patients to stop smoking for two weeks before and after the operation. If you need help to stop, contact particular associations which can help you. Don’t smoke 3 weeks before and after surgery. Smoking has a deep effect on reducing wound healing capabilities. It significantly increases the risk for infection to appear, wound healing problems, and scar formation. It also affects making the anesthesia. Some difficulties can arise during the anesthesia procedure.

Smoking and breast augmentation

Smoking decreases the amount of oxygen in the blood, which slow healing by the constricting the capillaries. Most doctors will reccomend that you will stop smoking prior to your surgery. Breast lift patients have even more reason to stop smoking. Why? – Lack of oxygen to the tissues can cause necrosis, this means death of healthy tissue. Due to the amount of hacks that are using during the breast lift (depending on what type of lift you get), you will most certainly not want to endager the level of oxygen that is supplied to those tissues. In some cases, lack of oxygen can lead to necrosis, which can lead to extrusion of the breast implants , not to mention about a higher risk of infection, as well as ugly scarring.

Smoking and rhinoplasty

If you’re a smoker, it’s important that you stop smoking for at least two weeks before and after rhinoplasty . Smoking significantly reduces your body’s circulation and vascularity, besides smokers generally heal slower and increase their risk of other complications such as necrosis, scarring, and skin loss. Also there are another issues related to smoking after rhinoplasty which can cause potentional coplications, these are: airway obstruction; anesthesia reaction; asymmetry; bleeding – bleeding can occur for up to four weeks following surgery, to fix this problem, the nasal packing may be required to control the bleeding and to minimize it. It is important that the patient not blow or pick the nose; burst blood vessels – though a rare occurrence; it is possible for small burst blood vessels to appear on the surface of the skin as tiny red spots which may be permanent; depressions of the skin; discoloration of the skin; extrusion of implants, and many others complications.

This information was not set forth to scare you, it was set forth to bring “smoking problem” up to discussion, and to show what can happen if you won’t stop smoking at least for a period of time, while all the course of healing will be over.

These recommendations for cosmetic plastic surgery preparation and period of recovery are the essential guide that will inform you how to deal with cosmetic plastic surgery , give tips and advices for better preparation and recovery process. Follow these recommendations and reach the best results!

1. It is vitally important to have a caregiver after a surgery. It could be family member, best friend, even a professional nurse. You may ask- why do I need a caregiver? Well, first thing to be said- it’s strongly not recommended to spend first 1-3 days (depends on the surgery) alone! Carer will help you with everyday cares such as feeding, walking you to rest room, cleaning your incisions, to put ice packs on swollen body areas, giving you medications and etc. Having a good and responsible caregiver will allow you to rest and sleep more, save your energy for recovery period and have emotional maintenance from another person.

2. You have to be ready that after surgery you may be irritable, angry, low of energy and every trivial thing may make you upset. It would be better for you to avoid any guests who are not going to support you and limit phone conversations.

3. If you had cosmetic surgery on facial area, don’t use any make-up for at least 2 weeks after surgery. Also you must avoid using any skincare, hair products, foods, which contain Vitamin E for 2-3 week before and after surgery. This vitamin is a blood thinner that may worsen bleeding during surgery and worsen your post-operative bruising.

4. Try to reduce your caffeine intake step-by-step starting 3 week before having a surgery. Then totally avoid it as you get into the last week before procedure. After surgery still keep caffeine out of your daily menu for 2 weeks. Remember, no coffee, tea and any kind of caffeine containing soda!

5. Lots of patients ask the same question – do I have to stop drinking alcohol and smoking before surgery? The answer is YES. Both these bad habits must be stopped for a minimum 3-4 weeks before surgery and at least 3 weeks during post-operative period. Avoiding this rule may cause inferior incarnation of your scars, complications and negative reaction with anesthesia.

6.  Every surgery includes a number of complications, which may contain swelling, bruising, pain and etc. Swelling is the most common complication, so it is recommended to use ice packs during the first 2-3 days after surgery. Put an ice pack to swollen area every hour for 20 minutes, and then make 40 min break and put it on again. You have to ask your caregiver to apply these ice packs while you sleep. Remember, never put an ice pack directly on your skin! First put a thin towel on swollen area and then place an ice pack.

7. Using homeopathic drugs may decrease swelling and bruising after surgery. You should start to take them a couple of weeks before surgery or few days prior to surgery and continue taking them for several days after procedure and up to 2 weeks post-operate.

8. Please, don’t touch, rub, bump your incision areas and avoid using any skincare products near your cuts!

9. When a surgeon removes sutures from your incisions, you must protect your scars from the sun with sunscreen worn for first 6 month after surgery. To further reduce scars, you may use scar healing products such as gels, homeopathic creams, vitamin E oil, and even manual massage.

10.  If you are planning to have great weekend, for example, in spa center, you must avoid hot saunas and Jacuzzi for 3-4 weeks after surgery. Also, when you are taking a shower, try to avoid hot water stream, because this can cause the swelling.

11. For facial procedures, you have to avoid using any kind of acids, which include astringents; exfoliants and alpha-hydroxyl till 3-4 weeks post-operation because they van irritate your vulnerable skin. Don’t color your hair and avoid waxing and tweezing facial hair for 1 month after a surgery. Also you should keep away from any skin treatments and haircuts.

12.  If you need to go out in public place, you will need to hide bruising and swelling. So, it may be necessary to buy specialized paramedical makeup (creams, foundations, color correctors), which will help you to hide all skin defects.

13. Do not raise anything heavier than about 10 pounds for at least 1 month after surgery. Such daily things as sport, exercising and even sex must be eliminated for a least 3 weeks.

14. You must avoid driving when you are taking pain relief pills or any other medications, which may cause somnolence or impair your vision.

15. It is not a secret that for plastic procedure , which include anesthesia where you may fell nauseous, so it is strongly recommended select non-spicy, non-chewy food that will not irritate your stomach. You should drink at least 8 glasses of water, vegetable juice or protein drinks per day to flash out poison and toxins, reduce the effect of qualm and dehydration.

16. If you are not able to hire a caregiver, help yourself by your own: set the table near your bed with telephone, water, medications, remote controls, doctor’s telephone number and wet napkins to clean your hands without soap. Also it is recommended to keep thermometer and incision kit close to you either.

17. Before the surgery, prepare your bed with clean bedding; choose the most suitable pillow for your elevated position.

18.  Keep your jalousies or curtains close to let you get sleep and avoid unwanted sunlight.

19. Do not use aspirin and ibuprofen for 2-3 weeks before surgery and for 2-3 weeks after it as they are blood thinners and may augment bleeding during surgery and post-operative bruising.

20. If you are taking pain relief pills after surgery, it’s important that you have something to eat each time before using them. Sometimes, persons may not have appetite, but try to eat a few salt-free crackers and then drink the water with your pill.

21. Report to your doctor all medications, supplements, homeopathic drugs, and any other products that you take during your daily life or are considering taking in the weeks before and after your procedure.