title: Relationships between lung function, smoking and morphology of dermal elastic fibres.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To investigate the relationship between lung function and dermal elastic fibres in non-smokers and smokers with and without chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).
  
  
  METHODS
  A cross-sectional study was performed with lung function as the outcome [forced expiratory volume in the first second (FEV1)%, FEV1/forced vital capacity (FVC)% and residual volume (RV)/total lung capacity (TLC)%] and smoking (pack-years) and morphology of dermal elastic fibres (fibres/mm(2) and percentage histologic field filled with them) as independent variables, with assessment of the associations between these variables by univariate and multivariate testing.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Sixty outpatients reporting chronic cough and/or phle\gm were enrolled (16 non-smokers/44 smokers; COPD: 26, 43.3%). Both lung function and elastic fibres in the reticular dermis (fibres/mm(2)r(s) = 0.36, percentage of the histologic field filled by elastic fibres r(s) = 0.48, P < or = 0.01) correlated with cumulative smoking (Spearman's rank correlation coefficient). Lung function parameters correlated with percentage of the histologic field filled by elastic fibres (FEV1%: r = -0.43; FEV1/FVC%: r = -0.36 and RV/TLC%: r = 0.43; P < or = 0.01, Pearson correlation coefficient), and COPD was significantly related to this morphologic parameter (odds ratio 1.26, 95% confidence interval 1.06-1.48; P = 0.006), associations that depended mainly on cumulative smoking.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Lung function impairment with an obstructive pattern is associated with morphologic abnormalities in the reticular dermis appearing in the histologic section as an increase in the percentage of the field filled by elastic fibres. This relationship depends on cumulative smoking and suggests a common effect of smoking on the elastic fibres in both lung and skin.
authors.affiliation: Servei de Dermatologia, Hospital Germans Trias i Pujol, Badalona, Catalonia, Spain.
authors.forename: Miquel
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Just
authors.forename: Eduard
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Monsó
authors.forename: Miquel
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Ribera
authors.forename: Joan Carles
authors.initials: JC
authors.lastname: Lorenzo
authors.forename: Josep
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Morera
authors.forename: Carles
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Ferrandiz
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D020405:Dermis / Q000473:pathology / Q000503:physiopathology*; D004548:Elasticity / Q000187:drug effects; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012129:Respiratory Function Tests; D012867:Skin / Q000473:pathology; D015595:Skin Aging / Q000473:pathology / Q000502:physiology; D012907:Smoking / Q000473:pathology / Q000503:physiopathology*