Only two months after successfully receiving her new face, Frenchwoman Isabelle Dinoire has picked up her old habit - smoking. According to a recent AP article, before the surgery, Dinoire was not able to swallow or eat properly, let alone light up. In fact, the serious extent of her disfigurement was described as follows:
The lower two-thirds of her nose had been ripped away. Both lips were gone, leaving her teeth bared in a grotesque grimace. The holes where nostrils once were gaped open and ghastly.
Not exactly an easy fix for chief surgeon, Jean-Michel Dubernard, and his team of French doctors. Still, after the history-making, five hour operation, doctors considered the procedure a success. Dinoire was on the road to recovery and was able to walk in public unnoticed with her new "hybrid" face (a combination of her old face and that of a 46-year-old, brain-dead donor) only two months later.
Around the same time, Dinoire resumed her smoking addiction, putting her new lips to - well, not really good - use. Doctors are more than a little worried about their patient's decision. While the tissue grafts have taken fairly well, doctors estimate the overall healing process at well over a year. In the meantime, Dinoire's attachment to cigarettes will likely cause major problems - smoking impairs the circulation of blood to newly acquired tissue and increases the risk of infection. (On a side note, I think I may have read an article or two that mentions cigarettes aren't that great for your health in general). So basically, Dinoire has been given a new lease on life, a one in a million opportunity, and for some reason, she can't put down the box of Marlboro Lights. Is anyone else confused here?
Wouldn't you imagine that doctors would make her sign some sort of post-surgery, behavior-specific clause that would prohibit her from making such a stupid decision? And what about Dinoire? I'm sure she's been lectured more times than she can count on her unwise pasttime. What does this say about her? Especially since she already experienced one tissue-rejection episode in December when her immune system rejected and attacked her new face! Luckily, doctors were able to treat the episode using heavy doses of steroids, but considering Dinoire's taste for nicotine - How much longer until it happens again?
