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Dose-dependent link found between cigarette smoking duration, retinal venular caliber size
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BUSAN, Korea — Patients with 10 years or more of smoking cessation had comparable retinal venular caliber size to patients who had never smoked, a study found. In addition, current smokers and those with a shorter cessation period had significantly greater mean retinal venular caliber size.
Masahide Yanagi, MD, and colleagues presented results from the Adult Health Study for survivors of the atomic bombings in Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Japan, in a poster study at APAO/SOE 2012. The cross-sectional analysis included 1,956 adults who had an eye examination between 2006 and 2008.
Cigarette smoking histories for the study participants have been obtained since 1963 through interviews and mail surveys.
“Retinal vessel caliber may be a sign indicating the effect of smoking on microvasculature, such as low-grade inflammation, which can persist for some time after smoking cessation,” the study authors said.
The exact mechanism of venular dilatation by smoking requires further study, the authors noted.
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