Effect of smoking on serum xanthine oxidase and malondialdehyde levels in patients with acute myocardial infarction

To evaluate the effect of smoking on blood levels of xanthine oxidase and malondialdehyde in acute myocardial infarction patients. The cross-sectional study was conducted from June to November 2013 and comprised myocardial infarction in-patients at Liaquat University of Medical and Health Sciences Hospital, Jamshoro, and Isra University Hospital, Hyderabad. Serum samples from age and gender matched smoking and non-smoking patients were investigated for the levels of xanthine oxidase and malondialdehyde by kit methods. Of the 88 serum samples investigated, 68[77.3%] belonged to men and 20[22.7%] to women. Among the 44 smokers, 35[79.5%] were men and 9[20.5%] were women. The overall mean age of the group was 49.6 +/- 8.0 years. Among the 44 non-smokers, 33[75%] were men and 11[25%] women. The overall mean age of the group was 50.9 +/- 8.4 Years. Smokers compared to non-smokers had significantly raised mean serum xanthine oxidase [0.31 +/- 0.05 vs 0.28 +/- 0.03mg/dl; p<0.05] and malondialdehyde [32.29 +/- 3.30 vs 30.30 +/- 2.87 micromol/L; p<0.04] levels. Smokers as against the non-smokers were at higher risk of developing acute myocardial infarction owing to increased level of oxidative stress caused by smoking