Tobacco-stained fingers: a clue for smoking-related disease or harmful alcohol use? A case-control study.

ABSTRACT:

Objective

Tobacco stain on fingers is frequent. However, there is scarce description of this clinical sign. We aimed to explore tobacco stain on fingers as a marker of tobacco-related disease independent of cumulative tobacco exposure, and to find behavioural and environmental characteristics associated with those stains.

Design

Case-control study.

Setting

A Swiss community hospital of 180 beds.

Participants

49 adults presenting tobacco-tars staining on fingers were matched to 49 control smokers by age, gender, height and pack-year (PY).

Outcome measures

Documented smoking-related carcinoma, ischaemic heart disease, peripheral arterial disease, stroke and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), also determined by lung function, were compared betwee

SUBMITTER: John G 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3822299 | biostudies-literature | 2013 Nov

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature