2003 CIGARETTE SMOKING AND INCREASE IN LONG TERM MUSCULOSKELTAL DISABILITY
A study of 15,140 US Army personnel over 8 years found that
cigarette smokers had significantly more long term musculoskeletal disabilities (generally
defined as being expected to be permanent or cause disability for more than 18 months).
Smokers had many more long term musculoskeletal disabilities than non-smokers for
many types of injuries including knee meniscal injury (p<0.001), collateral ligament
injury (p=0.003), should rotator cuff injury (p=0.01), chondromalacia (or damage to knee
cartiledge p=0.03) and intervertebral disk injury (p=0.05). Results were adjusted for age,
race and socioeconomic factors. Smoking may delay bone/joint healing by damaging
the blood vessels and reducing blood flow, by producing carbon monoxide which
reduces oxygen in the blood and by suppressing the immune system.
- Andrew Lincoln et al. The effect of cigarette smoking on musculoskeletal- related disability. American Journal of Industrial Medicine 2003;43:337-349.
[Ed.Wood smoke would cause similar reduction in blood flow, and oxygen and also suppresses the immune system.]
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