Cigarettes VS. The patch for bone growth

  • Thread starter Thread starter Brosiah
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Brosiah

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I smoke and I am having surgery soon. Obviously, I need to quit NOW so that my surgery will be worth while and I will be able to heal correctly(along with all the other benefits of quiting).
My question is: is nicotine what hurts bone growth or the chemicals in ciggerettes? I am wondering because while I dont smoke much (maybe 1/2 pack a day) I know I will need a quit-smoking aid such as the patch. However, if the nicotine in the patch is going to hurt me as much as a ciggerette I'll need another method.
Anyone know?
What worked for you?
 
Hey Brosiah,

My doctor told me the nicotine in the cigarettes would inhibit bone growth. This is bad news when having a fusion done. He told me not to use the patches or gum after the surgery because these would introduce nicotine into my body.

If my fusions hadn't actually fused, I didn't want to beat myself up over the fact that I could have quit smoking. Therefore, the best choice was to simply quit cold turkey. I smoked cigarettes for 29 years and quit the day of my surgery. This decision was an easy one for me because I wanted to do everything possible to stop the pain.
 
Congrats! Thats amazing you quit cold turkey. I think I could do it the day of the surgery because Ill be in the hospital for 5 days and I would think by then the physical withdrawls would be over. I just thought it would be beneficial to quit before. I guess it wouldnt hurt to use the patch before surgery so that I can at least get my lungs in fighting shape?? Maybe by the time the bone growth starts the nicotine will be out of my body.
What do y'all think?
 
I used Chantix and I quit 8 months before I had to have surgery. I had already had 2 cervical fusions and each time I had pneumonia and other problems following the surgeries and I am sure the smoking added to those problems. I knew I was going to have to have lower back surgery eventually so I decided early to quit. I had smoked for 40 years and it wasn't easy but I put my mind to it and I knew it would only help in my recovery and I was glad I did. I didn't like the extra weight I gained from quitting and still trying to lose it:(. I will admit that the Chantix did make me nauseated so it made the cigarettes taste really bad to me.

Good luck with whatever you do and believe it or not you will feel better if you can quit. You might want to go over to the "Smoking Cessation" board and see what everyone tries and there might be some more suggestions for you.

Linda:angel:
 
I didnt know there was such a board, I will check it out for sure. Thanks for the tip! The only problem with Chantix is that I heard it causes depression and suicidal thoughts. Especially for people who take anti-depressants. I take Prozac. Although my depression is under control, my situation with the pain has me pretty bummed:(.
Did you have any psychological side effects?
 
Brosiah, Definitely, if you can quit before the surgery, you should do so. Not only will you be more prepared for the bone growths but your lungs will be in better shape to deal with the anesthesia.
 
I don't smoke, but I did "dip" (snuff, smokeless tobacco that you put a pinch in between lip and gum) for about 15 years. I had about 10 weeks from when I decided to have surgery until the actual date. I used that time to get in the best shape I possibly could. I quit "dipping", I gave up beer, started taking a multi-vitamin, eating healthy, and (though it increased my pain) I started seeing a personal trainer. The goal: be in the best shape possible before surgery, so that I would have the best results after. I managed to drop my resting heart rate from 85+ to around 65 in that time!

I'm not suggesting that you go to extremes, but I think being healthy pre-op has been very beneficial Post-Op. Having stronger legs and core has made it a lot easier to get in and out of bed (though not easy!) and I was able to get back to walking much faster. And as thewino mentioned, quiting smoking will help with anesthia, especially since you will have a lower/healthier resting heart rate!
 
I just read another article tonight about the depression side effect of Chantix. I have to admit that I never had that problem but obviously other people had to deal with it. If I was you I would talk to my doctor (Family doctor) about Chantix and depression. I hope you can get some help because I admit it was a hard thing to do but I was so happy that I did quit before the back surgery. I want to wish you good luck, also. I hope you were able to get some helpful information from the other board, also.

Linda:angel:
 
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