Smokers have an increased risk of pancreatitis

This is according to a study just published in the Archives of Internal Medicine. It also appears that the risk of developing the disease may be higher in heavy smokers. This risk is independent of alcohol intake, which is known to be a risk factor in acute and chronic pancreatitis.

Janne Schurmann Tolstrup, the National Institute of Public Health, University of Southern Denmark, Copenhagen, Denmark, and colleagues analysed results from physical examinations and lifestyle habit self-administered questionnaires of 17 905 participants (9573 women, 8332 men) to determine if smoking was associated with an increased risk of acute or chronic pancreatitis independent of alcohol consumption and gallstone disease. Participants were followed up for an average of 20.2 years.

"Overall, 58% of the women and 68% of the men were current smokers, 15% of the women and 19% of the men were ex-smokers and 28% of the women and 13% of the men had never smoked," the authors wrote.

"Participants who at baseline reported smoking or being previous smokers had higher risks of developing acute and chronic pancreatitis compared with non-smokers."

By the end of the study, 235 participants (113 women, 122 men) had developed acute (160 cases) or chronic (97 cases) pancreatitis, with some participants having developed both. About 46% of pancreatitis cases were attributable to smoking in this group.

Although alcohol intake was associated with increased risk of pancreatitis, the risk of pancreatitis associated with smoking was independent of alcohol and gallstone disease.

"Apart from the epidemiologic evidence of an association between smoking and development of acute and chronic pancreatitis, a biological effect of smoking seems plausible because both animal studies and human studies have demonstrated changes of the pancreas and in pancreatic functioning after exposure to tobacco smoke," they concluded.