Recurrent aphthous stomatitis and smoking.
BACKGROUND
Several studies have reported cigarette smoking to have a beneficial protective effect on recurrent aphthous stomatitis (RAS). In this study, we evaluated once again the incidence of smoking in RAS patients compared with controls. This study differs from most previous ones in that the patients were diagnosed by direct observation of active lesions by a dermatologist.


METHODS
Thirty-four patients with RAS who were seen at the dermatology clinic during a period of 2 years were compared with 115 outpatients with other skin diseases and 20 healthy hospital personnel who had no history of aphthae, with regard to their smoking habits.


RESULTS
Among the 34 patients with RAS, 8.8% were active smokers compared with a significantly higher percentage (25.2%) among the control subjects.


CONCLUSIONS
In agreement with others, we found a negative epidemiologic association between smoking and RAS. This finding can be used to clarify the cause and pathogenesis of the disease, and possibly to identify better treatment or preventive options than those currently available.
Tüzün
B
B
Department of Dermatology, Trakya University, Medical Faculty, Edirne, Turkey.
Wolf
R
R
Tüzün
Y
Y
Serdaroğlu
S
S
D000328:Adult; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D015994:Incidence; D008297:Male; D012008:Recurrence; D012907:Smoking / Q000009:adverse effects* / Q000453:epidemiology*; D013281:Stomatitis, Aphthous / Q000209:etiology* / Q000517:prevention & control*; D014421:Turkey / Q000453:epidemiology