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/ Technology News / 2008 / January 2008 / January 30, 2008 Secondhand smoke worsens cystic fibrosis patients lung function |
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Exposure to secondhand smoking can worsen the condition of patients with cystic fibrosis, says a new study.
Washington, Jan 30 : Exposure to secondhand smoking can worsen the condition of patients with cystic fibrosis, says a new study.
Cystic Fibrosis (CF) is an inherited chronic disease that causes thick, sticky mucus to build up in the lungs, leading to life-threatening lung infections and other digestion problems.
The study, led by Garry Cutting, M.D., a professor of paediatrics and medicine and member of the McKusick-Nathans Institute of Genetic Medicine, describes one gene variation that can weaken lung function as well as shorten the lifespan of those affected by cystic fibrosis and also are exposed to secondhand smoke.
"We're really surprised that such a small genetic change can double the negative effects of secondhand smoke on lung function in these patients. It's always been suspected that secondhand smoke is detrimental to lung disease patients, and now we have a handle on one specific gene that clearly makes it worse for those with CF," Cutting said.
In the study, the researchers reviewed 812 participants, in which 188 were exposed to secondhand smoke at home. The participants were recruited between 2000 and 2006 as part of the U.S. Cystic Fibrosis Twin and Sibling Study and the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation Data Registry.
The analysis revealed that secondhand smoke exposure was associated with decreased lung function in CF patients, measured by how much air a person could breathe out in the first second of expiration. According to Cutting, any secondhand smoke exposure reduced lung function by 10 percent.
"We know by observation that some patients tend to do worse than others, so we wondered if genes played a clear role in how CF patients react to secondhand smoke," Cutting said.
The research team compared patient lung function with their particular genetic variant of CF as well as the genetic variant of another gene, TGFbeta1, which has been shown to affect the severity of CF and asthma.
CF patients who also carried particular TGFbeta1 mutations fared twice as badly in lung function when exposed to secondhand smoke compared with those who were not exposed.
"This means that a 17-year old CF patient with a TGFbeta1 mutation and exposed to secondhand smoke would have lung function similar to that of a 24-year-old who wasn't exposed to secondhand smoke. This gene-environment interaction drastically accelerates reduced lung function," Cutting said.
The study is published in the Journal of the American Medical Association.
ANI
