EFFECT OF CIGARETTE SMOKING ON THE GASTRIC HEMODYNAMICS

Analysis by Reflectance Spectrophotometry

Abstract

In 8 young healthy volunteers (5 habitual smokers, 20 cigarettes/day for 4 years, 3 unhabitual smokers, only a few chgarettes/year), the effect of cigarette smoking on the gastric mucosal hemodynamics was studied using reflectance spectrophotometry.
In all cases, the gastric mucosal blood volume after one to three puffings of cigarette smoking decreased quickly. The decrease of the mucosal blood volume after cigarette smoking was 22% of the level before smoking in habitual smokers (n=5), while it was 63% of the level before cigarette smoking in unhabitual smokers (n=3). The recovery of the gastric mucosal blood volume after 3 puffs of cigarette smoking was faster in habitual smokers than in unhabitual smokers. The results suggest that the cigarette smoking weakens the deffensive factors by lowering the gastric mucosal blood flow which would affect the occurrence and healing of the peptic ulcer.