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General Joint Surgery Information

Nicotine Hinders Bone Grafts

Here is another good reason to stop smoking. At the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons, a paper was reviewed that showed that nicotine delays the successful healing of bone grafts by delaying the growth of a new blood supply in the graft. Bone grafts are used for fracture repair, spinal fusion and in some joint replacement procedures.

For bone grafts to succeed, blood vessel growth (which establishes blood supply) must occur. Inadequate blood supply diminishes the quality and amount of the new bone. The study shows that even nicotine patches are not a safe alternative to cigarettes in this case, because it is the nicotine causing the problem, not just the smoke.

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