A Swedish researcher has found that quitting smoking at least four weeks prior to surgery can decrease surgical complications, Science Daily reported Sept 24.

Researcher David Lindstrom studied 117 pre-operative patients at the Stockholm South General Hospital. A smoking-cessation program was provided to 50 percent of the patients four weeks before surgery. The number of complications after surgery was nearly cut in half for patients who quit smoking, compared to those who were not offered the cessation program.

Prior research has shown that smokers are more likely to suffer surgical complications like infection and slow healing. Lindstrom's study found that quitting smoking as late as four weeks before surgery can decrease the likelihood of post-operative problems.

Lindstrom, a surgeon, also discovered that surgery itself seemed to be a motivating factor for quitting: 58 percent of those offered cessation tools quit smoking prior to surgery, and a third of these patients remained abstinent for at least a year after surgery.

Lindstrom reported the findings in his doctoral thesis at the Karolinska Institutet.