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Background: Tobacco use is a major preventable cause of morbidity and mortality. Tobacco usage among medical professionals should be reduced. It is important that they are aware regarding effects/ill effects of tobacco use, anti tobacco strategies, tobacco cessation technique to reduce tobacco usage among population. Authors undertook this study to understand tobacco use among medical students.Methods: Authors conducted cross sectional, descriptive study by collecting anonymous data of 414 undergraduate medical students of medical college, Jamnagar in predesigned forms. Data were analysed using MS-excel and graphpad prism. Authors used Fagerstrom test for nicotine dependence to assess nicotine dependence.Results: Tobacco users were 19.57%, among them 83.95% were smokers. Prevalence was higher in male (34.35% in male and 1.09% in female subgroup) and students with positive family history (36.81% in positive and 6.03% in negative family history subgroup). Current users were 7.73%. They were 8.20% in hosteller and 2.78% day scholar subgroups. Authors didn抰 find statistical significant association of medical education with habit. Leading causes of starting tobacco use were curiosity/recreational purpose (35.8%), peer group pressure (32.10%) and stress (25.93%). Most of current user had low nicotine dependence (73.33%).Conclusions: Tobacco use among medical students is a significant problem. Important factors affecting it are gender, family history, current living status, stress, peer group pressure, media influences. Authors recommend that special awareness programme and specific training regarding tobacco cessation should be given to medical students.
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CONTEXT: Cervical cancer is the second most common malignancy among women in India. There is thus a need to identify unexplored risk factors such as occupational exposure to tobacco dust to justify its increasing trend so as to recommend suitable preventive measures. AIMS: The aim was to study the association between occupational exposure to tobacco dust with development of carcinoma cervix. SETTINGS AND DESIGN: Case‑control study done in two tertiary care hospitals in Mangalore. METHODOLOGY: 239 histologically confirmed new cases of cervical cancer and the equivalent number of age‑matched controls from 2011 to 2012 were interviewed about occupational history of beedi rolling and related factors. STATISTICAL ANALYSIS: Chi‑square test, unpaired t‑test, logistic regression. RESULTS: Exposure rate to tobacco dust following beedi rolling was 63 (26.4%) among cases and 38 (15.9%) among controls (P = 0.005, odds ratio [OR] =1.893). The latent period from occupational exposure of tobacco dust subsequent to beedi rolling and development of cervical cancer was found to be 26.5 ± 8.5 years. Adjusted OR of beedi rolling with development of cervical cancer was found to be 1.913 (P = 0.005) after controlling the confounding effect of tobacco usage and was 1.618 (P = 0.225) after controlling the effects of all confounders. Three‑quarters of beedi rollers were working in conditions of inadequate ventilation and hardy anybody used face mask during work. About a quarter of participants underwent voluntary screening for cervical cancer. CONCLUSION: Occupational exposure to tobacco dust was found to be associated with risk of developing cervical cancer. Measures to promote awareness, timely screening of this disease along with the improvement in working conditions is required for improving the health status of beedi rollers and to minimize the incidence of carcinoma cervix in the community.