Not everyone is a good fit for cosmetic surgery…
The first groups of patients that cosmetic surgeon Dr. Bryce Cowan advises against surgery is smokers. Smoking elevates the risks of complications as tissue healing is affected, and there are higher rates of infection, and higher rates of tissue death or necrosis can be expected. Given that the patient is already paying significant sums for a cosmetic procedure,they should want to ensure that all goes well, and it’s not ideal to do it when the risks of complications are this high. However, those patients could become great candidates for cosmetic procedure once they’ve stopped smoking for a significant period of time.
Patients need to be able to both understand and accept the risks of surgery. It’s a balance between their motivation and desire to undergo surgery and their willingness to accept the risks involved with that procedure. Surgery does come with risks, and patients need to weight these out against their desires. Finally, patients should truly desire to undergo surgery of their own accord. Sometimes there are external reasons like their job or their loved ones that drive some people to undergo surgery. In many of these cases, we advise that the patient rethink their decisions and motivations.
