The Mystery of the Lingering Carcinogens
By Barbara Lock, MDFebruary 01, 2010
A couple of days ago, I saw a young man who had a skin infection. He smelled of tobacco.
"Do you smoke?" I asked. He shook his head no.
I turned to the medical student who was hovering politely next to the bed. "Do you smoke?" I asked. He gave a slight laugh and also shook his head.
So there we had it: a new mystery to solve. Let's call it the Mystery of the Lingering Carcinogens.
But there we were, trapped in an exam room with three alleged non-smokers and a deep and abiding tobacco presence.
"Who smokes?" I persisted.
The young man nodded his head. "It's my mother," he said. "She's the smoker."
"OK," I said. "But try to avoid that smoke. Exposure to tobacco smoke will make it difficult for your infection to improve. You've got to stay away from smoke."
He nodded half-heartedly. We talked more about the plan to treat his infection I went out of the room to write prescriptions.
His mother approached me. "What's he got? She asked abruptly.
"He's got an infection. We'll be giving him some medication, but it could still get worse. He'll need to get a check up and stay away from smoke," I said. "Exposure to cigarette smoke can make infections worse. If anyone in the house smokes, you should consider smoking outside."
The woman did the most exaggerated double take I had ever seen. "I...what? Do you know how cold it is outside? I'm not smoking outside! How could you...! I mean, I know people have turned against smokers, but this is ridiculous!" She rolled her eyes and caught the attention of a medical assistant who was stocking the closet with supplies.
"Can you believe she said that?" the woman said, starting to pace. "I'm about ready to...you know, these doctors think they can just say anything."
The medical technician froze in confusion, not sure what she was witnessing. The physician assistant next to me glanced carefully over out of the corner of her eye. Were we about to have a scene? Were we going to be the next victims of workplace violence? Was this woman going to escalate because I had advised her to help keep her grown son healthy by not smoking in the house?
I remained impassive. It was clear that even something as innocuous as standard medical advice would make her angry, so I said as little as possible, and the young man received his treatment and instructions without further conflict.
Smoking is bad for your skin. Surprise!
Cigarette smoking causes lung cancer, worsens heart disease, worsens asthma, causes chronic bronchitis, and reduces fertility. It also predisposes people to infections, and imperils skin.
Women who smoke are more likely than those who do not smoke to develop recurrent breast abscesses, there is a high prevalence of smokers among adults who get peritonsilar abscesses, andsmoking was significantly and independently associated with the skin infection known as cellulitis in the legs of VA patients.
Cigarette smoking speeds up skin damage, according to an Ohio twin study. Mice who are experimentally exposed to cigarette smoke have a delay in the creation of new blood vessels (angiogenesis) and a delay in wound healing.
Smoking is a poor choice for health. While the mystery of the lingering carcinogens was solved, my patient's health problems would undoubtedly continue. But you can make better choices.
Please read our legal disclaimer.
Write a comment
- Required fields are marked with *.
Bookmark with:
What are these?