A STUDY OF ASSOCIATION OF SMOKING WITH PULMONARY TB

OBJECTIVES: To determine the association between pulmonary tuberculosis and cigarette smoking. METHODOLOGY: This retrospective study was carried out in Hamidia hospital, a tertiary care centre in Bhopal. Medical charts of tuberculosis patients presenting in year 2011 to 2013 were reviewed. Three hundred eleven patients aged 18-60 years with confirm diagnosis of pulmonary tuberculosis (smear positive) were selected as cases and 540 age matched persons without tuberculosis (patients hospitalized in other wards) were selected randomly as controls. Data on smoking status, quantity of cigarette smoked, and duration of smoking was collected from medical charts. Statistical analysis was done to see the correlation. RESULTS: Out of total 311 case, 150 (48.3%) were smoker, while, of total 640 controls 143 (22.3%) were smoker. The estimated odds ratio (OR) of the relation between smoking and tuberculosis was 3.58. The mean pack - years of smoking (considering 20 cigarette/packet) in cases and controls were 15.9 +/- 13.7 and 13.5 +/- 9.1, respectively. The ORs for mild (1-10 cigarettes/day), moderate (11-20/day), and heavy (>20/day) smokers were 2.6, 2.94, and 3.25, respectively. The ORs for smokers with < 10 years duration, 11-20 years, and > 20 years of smoking were 1.68, 2.51, and 4.10, respectively. CONCLUSION: This study showed that pulmonary tuberculosis is associated to cigarette smoking habit. The association is dosedependent and time related. Smoking may be a risk factor for TB acquisition.