Abstract

Background: UP is one of the biggest cultivators of tobacco. Rules of tobacco consumption are almost absent in the state. The state has almost 34% of young male smokers.

Aims and Objectives: The idea of creating awareness among cigarette smokers and promote deaddiction among youth the present study was conducted in Muzaffarnagar Medical College to assess the cardiovascular risks according to the degree of exposure, i.e., pack-years of smoking.

Materials and Methods: A total of 150 male subjects were taken for the study after proper consent. Five groups were formed - controls (no smoking), Group 1; 0–10 pack-years of smoking, Group 2; 11–20 pack-years of smoking, Group 3; 21–30 pack-years of smoking, and Group 4; 31–40 pack-years of smoking. Pack-years formula = (number of cigarettes smoked per day/20) × number of years smoked was used. Only cigarette smokers were used for the study after using exclusion criteria to rule out any confounding factor. Serum lipid profile and high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hsCRP) were estimated.

Results: As the degree of exposure is increasing, i.e. pack-years of smoking increases, the level of dyslipidemias is also becoming severe being highly significant P < 0.01** in 31–40 pack-years of smoking. hsCRP is significantly increasing P < 0.05* in Group 2 and showing highly significant P < 0.01** increase in Groups 3 and 4.

Conclusion: Cardiovascular risks are increasing significantly as pack-years of smoking is increasing as indicated by dyslipidemias and hsCRP increase, means 21–30 and 31–40 pack-years are at higher risk as compared to 0–10 and 11–20 pack-years.

Key words: Cigarette; Smokers; High-sensitivity C-reactive protein; Tobacco; Cardiovascular risks; Lipid profile