By: Francisco Canales, MD

Full disclosure to your surgeon is important for attractive results, but also for your health and safety during surgery and recovery. A clear majority of my Sonoma-area cosmetic surgery patients are more than willing to provide the specifics of their health history and any existing conditions to me in their consultation. This makes sense – after all, they want good results. But occasionally, patients will forget to mention some factors that may not be immediately obvious from their health records, but may still influence their recovery.

A few examples:

• Non-prescription and topical drugs like aspirin, herbal supplements, and topical acne creams, if taken repeatedly over a long period of time, can have a cumulative effect on blood pressure, circulation, and immune response, all of which are integral to good healing.
• Laser vision correction can affect a patient’s tear ducts in ways that may not heal properly if the patient receives eyelid surgery within a short time of their laser eye surgery. Simply by delaying the Santa Rosa blepharoplasty procedure, the patient and the surgeon can both avoid this problem.

Before your consultation, it is a good idea to think through your recreational habits, grooming activities, health maintenance practices, and medical history, and make your surgeon aware of the following:

• Any medical procedures (surgical or otherwise, including elective cosmetic treatments) you have undergone during the past year
• Any known congenital problems or medical allergies
• Recent activities that may have exposed you to disease, such as travel to a third-world country
• Any medications or supplements you are taking, in any form

This list is not complete, of course, and a good plastic surgeon will go over your health history thoroughly before the day of surgery.

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