The terms “herbal” or “natural” are practically identical with safety for most people. Over-the-counter medications that can be purchased without a doctor’s prescription are often misguidedly assumed to be risk-free.
A study in the March/April 2009 issue of Aesthetic Surgery Journal titled, “Perioperative Risks and Benefits of Herbal Supplements in Aesthetic Surgery”, cautions that over 40% of cosmetic surgery patients take herbal supplements in the two weeks preceding a surgical procedure. While a number of herbal supplements may offer benefits during recuperation after plastic surgery, familiar herbal products such as ginseng, echinacea, valerian root, garlic, ginkgo biloba, ephedra and others can cause harmful effects if taken during preparations for surgery.
When going through cosmetic surgery, the most substantial and possibly hazardous effects of alternative medications crop up during the operative and immediate postoperative periods with the chief matters being: sedative effects, change of blood coagulation, cardiovascular effects, and reactions with other medications.
Regrettably, as many as 70% of patients may not divulge the intake of herbal medications to their physician or health care provider, sometimes because they feel these cosmetic surgeons have not much understanding or interest in “natural” drugs, or they feel physicians may frown on such supplements. Some patients simply refuse to acknowledge the bearing of supplement intake to their present medical or cosmetic surgical treatment. Patients must be informed that complete disclosure of all medications – both those that are obtained over-the-counter and those that are prescribed – is exceptionally critical to their well-being and safety. They should also realize that conflicting and unregulated manufacturing criterions and deficiency in regulation for several herbal medications suggests that quality and dosage may differ greatly among treatments.
The proponents of the study recommend that in order to avoid potential plastic surgery complications, patients must be educated and given a complete list of medications that must be avoided prior to the operative period.
To read an abstract of the article, click here.

