Nicotine Test?

[Lisa75 3]

When do they do this test? The morning or surgery or when?

[Lisa1967 0]

It depends on the laboratory it gets resulted at. If your local laboratory has to send it to a reference lab, they may do the test sooner. I was suppose to do mine a couple weeks before surgery. I guess my surgeon forgot. Oh well!! lol.

[Lollicatt 36]

What nicotine test?

[Lisa1967 0]

Some physicians require it if you are a former smoker. My surgeons requirement for surgery was 6 months smoke free and would run a nicotine test. I would have had to have quit for over a year not to have one. But I didn't have one, he forgot lol

[Lollicatt 36]

Ok so I would know if he was giving me one? Surgery is on thursday and I haven't quit...why should I? Other than the obvious, 'its bad for', answer.

[Pats Fan in MA 1]

Let me preface with: I was a regular smoker for many years, then for the past year or two was down to 1 per day, sometimes skipping a day. Still hard to give up that one/day.

Other than the obvious, it being bad for you in general, it increases your risk of developing a blood clot or clots during and immediately after surgery (that's scary stuff), and it inhibits the healing process.

Look, my best friend, smart, beautiful woman that she is, didn't completely give up smoking with both her pregnancies. She has two healthy kids. She did have all sorts of healing complications with her C-sections though.

Yeah, you could be the person who doesn't develop a blood clot or take a longer time healing, but it will be because you got very lucky, not because it doesn't happen.

Take care!

[sherrypep 91]

I had two have two blow tests under a 3. They made me blow into a machine that measures the carbon dioxide in your lungs. I believe it goes up to 10 but because of second hand smoke most people have a litte in their lungs. I had quit for 4 weeks and I blew a 1. My docter wants you to quit 2 months prior because he thinks if your going to start your new healthier life you need to be totally comitted, I can see where he is coming from but it isn't always so easy. Good luck.