Im my eleven years of plastic surgery in Lousville,  over the counter meds and supplements have become much more popular. In general, it’s best to stop taking all over the counter medications 2 weeks before surgery. There are a couple of reasons.

First, we don’t know what’s in a lot of the stuff that’s out there, especially the weight loss products and nutritional supplements. Most of the ingredients are probably OK, but sometimes there are ingredients that can result in dangerous swings in your blood pressure during anesthesia. This is especially true of the diet drugs. For this reason, your Anesthesiologist will probably cancel your surgery if you show up on diet drugs or supplements that don’t have a list of ingredients.

I also see a lot of folks who are taking “healthy” supplements like Vitamin E or Fish Oil. These are normally fine, but both can cause bleeding during surgery. The same is true for Aspirin, advil, motrin, alleve and these types of non-steroidal drugs.

The best thing to do when you have surgery upcoming is to make sure you let your doctor know everything you are taking. Don’t assume anything, it may result in your surgery being cancelled. And don’t just stop taking everything, your doctor may have you on aspirin for your heart. It may be that you can’t safely come off the aspirin!

As for prescription drugs, you must talk with your surgeon before altering your routine. Remember, when in doubt ask your doctor.

Lee Corbett, MD

www.CorbettCosmeticSurgery.com

502.721.0330

All posts on this blog are authored by Louisville Cosmetic Plastic Surgeon, Dr. Lee Corbett. Dr. Corbett specializes in cosmetic plastic surgery including facelifts, browlifts, blepharoplasy, Botox, Juvederm, Restylane, breast augmentation, breast lifts, breast reductions, body lifts, liposuction,  and tummy tucks.