Comparative Study Of Lipid Profile Between Chronic Smokeless Tobacco Consumers/ Tobacco Chewers Vis-A-Vis Non-Consumers In Tertiary Care Teaching Hospital Of Western India

Background:Ischemic heart diseases are the leading cause of death due to non-communicable diseases in India. Tobacco consumption is well proven risk factor for ischemic heart disease. Tobacco chewing is a very common practice done in Gujarat as well as other regions of India. Nicotine is the active ingredient in tobacco which causes alteration in lipid profile over long term consumption. According to “global adult tobacco survey (2016-2017)” over 21.4% of Indian adults consume smokeless/chewable tobacco. Present study was conducted to compare the lipid profile of non-tobacco consumers vs. chronic smokeless/chewable tobacco consumers.Material And Methods:The study was conducted after taking approval of Institutional Ethics Committee. A total of 100 selected study participants (non-obese male without any history of cardiovascular diseases and diabetes and not on any lipid altering medications) were divided in to case and control arm based on the history of consumption of CSLT(chronic smokeless tobacco)for 8 years or not. After overnight fasting,blood samples of both group individuals were taken for estimation of lipid profile. Details of lipid profile along with other demographic data were recorded in predesigned case record form. Result:A significant increase in lipid profile parameters such as TC, LDL, and TG were seen in chronic tobacco chewers compared to control group. Mean total cholesterol (TC), low density lipoprotein(LDL)and serum triglycerides levels in CSLT consumers were 222 mg/dl, 148 mg/dl and 171 mg/dl respectively. These parameters were higher in CSLT consumers as compared to control group by 68mg/dl (TC), 53 mg/dl (LDL) and 66 mg/dl (TG).Conclusion:Chr onic tobacco chewing was found to be associated with alteration in all the lipid profile parameters. Altered lipid profile is the proven risk for cardiovascular ailments. Hence ahypothesis can be generated from the study that CSLT consumption is the responsible factor for cardiovascular diseases. This can be tested further on large scale studies along with differences in the type of CSLT consumption and development of cardiovascular diseases can be evaluated.