Abstract

The harmful effects of tobacco’s smoke have been well-known for years and several studies revealed that exposure to biomass smoke can markedly increase the prevalence of respiratory disorders. In this study, separate and combined effects of tobacco smoke and biomass exposure on pulmonary radiologic findings were examined in rats. The subjects were divided into four groups; control group, exposure group (tobacco smoke alone), exposure group (biomass smoke alone) and exposure group (both tobacco and biomass smoke). High-resolution computed tomography examinations were performed. Presence or absence of radiological abnormalities such as the ground-glass appearance, fibrotic band, peribronchovascular thickening, air-cyst bullae, pleural thickening, bronchiectatic change and curvilinear densities were recorded. Many radiological findings were more prominent in groups exposed to smoke. This study demonstrates harmful effects of tobacco and biomass smoke on lungs in a rat model.

Key words: Animal study, biomass smoke, thoracic computed tomography, tobacco smoke.