Numerous studies in the field of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) examine smoking as a risk factor for the onset of a disease, as well as the development of complications resulting from it. Recent studies have shown that smokers with Crohn‘s disease (CD) are at risk for developing a severe disease, which deteriorates their quality of life. The aim of this study was to examine the incidence of smoking among patients with CD.
For a period of 5 years 140 patients with CD were studied retrospectively. The results were processed with a statistical program SPSS v 20 using quantitative and qualitative methods (t-Student factor, χ2).
The average age of our patients with CD was 40.8 years ±3.6 (SD). The youngest patient was 18 years old and the oldest was 82 years old. Approximately half of the patients (47.1%) were current smokers and 36.8 % were former smokers. We found that patients who were current smokers or quitters had a much higher risk for developing a severe disease than non-smokers. Also, our study showed that women, both current and former smokers, had more severe diseases compared to men. With regard to the extent of the disease, in current smokers prevail patients with ileocolic localization (40.0%), in former smokers - patients with small intestine involvement (40.0%) and in non-smokers - those with colonic involvement (54.5%).
The results from our study confirmed those of other authors, who identify female smokers as a risk group, but refute others, reporting the prevalence of patients with small intestine involvement.
Cosnes J., L. Beaugerie, F. Carbonnel, J. Gendre. Smoking cessation and the course of Crohn‘s disease: An intervention study. Gastroenterology, Vol. 120, Issue 5, April 2001, P. 1093–1099
Harries AD, Baird A, Rhodes J. Nonsmoking: a feature of ulcerative colitis. Br Med J 1982; 284: 706
Johnson G., J. Cosnes, J. Mansfield. Review article: smoking cessation as primary therapy to modify the course of Crohn’s disease. Aliment Pharmacol Ther 2005; 21: 921–931
Lofberg R. Medical treatment of mild to moderate active Crohn’s disease. Alim Pharmacol Ther 2003; 17(Suppl. 2): 18–22
Mahid S., K. Minor, P. Stevens, S. Galandiuk. The Role of Smoking in Crohn’s Disease as Defined by Clinical Variables. Digestive Diseases and Sciences, 2007, Vol. 52, Issue 11, pp 2897-2903
Shields PL, Low-Beer TS. Patient’s awareness of adverse relation between Crohn’s disease and their smoking: questionnaire survey. BMJ 1996; 313: 265–6
Somerville KW, Logan REA, Edmond M, et al Smoking and Crohn’s disease. Br Med J 1984; 289: 954–6
