Impaired quality of life of healthy young smokers.
OBJECTIVE
To investigate the health-related quality of life (HRQL) profile of healthy young subjects with a short smoking history.


METHODS
Observational data at a single point in time.


METHODS
Survey in two public universities.


METHODS
Seventy-seven smoker students without any comorbidities (39 men; mean +/- SD age, 20.5 +/- 2.0 years). A control group for HRQL measurements was composed of 97 healthy, never-smoker students from the same universities (55 men; mean +/- SD age, 20.6 +/- 2.0 years).


METHODS
All subjects were blinded to the study proposal, and answered autoapplicable forms dealing with healthy habits, smoking, and the 36-item short form questionnaire.


RESULTS
Never-smokers showed higher mean quality-of-life scores than smokers in all domains. Statistically significant differences were observed for the domains physical functioning (86.5 +/- 12.9 vs 93.4 +/- 9.6), general health perceptions (64.3 +/- 19.8 vs 79.2 +/- 13.4), vitality (58.4 +/- 20.0 vs 64.6 +/- 16.5), social functioning (59.3 +/- 19.7 vs 76.3 +/- 19.6), and mental health index (66.4 +/- 21.1 vs 71.9 +/- 15.5).


CONCLUSIONS
Healthy, light-to-moderate smokers with a short smoking history show significant impairment in physical and mental domains of HRQL in comparison to never-smokers. A better elucidation of these aspects may provide useful information for planning smoking-cessation interventions.
Martinez
José Antônio Baddini
JA
Department of Internal Medicine, Medical School of Ribeirão Preto, University of São Paulo, Avenida Bandeirantes 3900, CEP: 14048-900, Ribeirão Preto, São Paulo, Brazil. jabmarti@fmrp.usp.br
Mota
Gustavo Assis
GA
Vianna
Elcio Santos Oliveira
ES
Filho
João Terra
JT
Silva
Gerusa Alves
GA
Rodrigues
António Luiz
AL
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D017677:Age Distribution; D001294:Attitude to Health; D001938:Brazil / Q000453:epidemiology; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D015331:Cohort Studies; D005260:Female; D006304:Health Status; D006305:Health Status Indicators; D006306:Health Surveys; D006801:Humans; D008019:Life Style; D008297:Male; D011336:Probability; D011788:Quality of Life; D012016:Reference Values; D018570:Risk Assessment; D017678:Sex Distribution; D012907:Smoking / Q000453:epidemiology*; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D014029:Tobacco Use Disorder / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology*