title: [Smoking and tuberculosis].
abstract: Smoking and tuberculosis represent two major world health issues particularly in developing countries. Tobacco smoke increases risk of Mycobaterium tuberculosis infection by several means: alteration of muco-ciliary clearance, reduced alveolar macrophage activity; immune-depression of pulmonary lymphocytes, reduction of cytotoxic activity of natural killer cells, alteration of the activity of the pulmonary dendritic cells. Both active and passive smoking increases the risk of latent tubercular infection and of pulmonary and extra-pulmonary tuberculosis. Active smoking increases the severity of pulmonary tuberculosis (gravity of radiological lesions). The diagnostic delay and recovery details are more important for smokers. Active smoking increases relapses of both pulmonary and extra-pulmonary tuberculosis after treatment with or without the Directly Observed Treatment Short course (DOTS) with poor observance of treatment. The mortality risk from tuberculosis is heightened among smokers. Smoking cessation represents an essential means of controlling tuberculosis epidemics in developing countries.
authors.affiliation: CHU de Poitiers, centre de lutte antituberculeuse (CLAT 86), service de pneumologie, unité de tabacologie, pavillon Réné-Beauchant, BP 577, 86021 Poitiers, France. m.underner@chu-poitiers.fr
authors.forename: Michel
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Underner
authors.forename: Jean
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Perriot
mesh_terms: D003906:Developing Countries; D014943:Global Health; D006801:Humans; D055985:Latent Tuberculosis / Q000453:epidemiology*; D009169:Mycobacterium tuberculosis; D012008:Recurrence; D012307:Risk Factors; D012907:Smoking / Q000453:epidemiology*; D016540:Smoking Cessation; D014397:Tuberculosis, Pulmonary / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000503:physiopathology