Is it ok to smoke after having acute pancreatitis?

Question

My friend has recently got out of hospital after having acute pancreatitis at level 3.3 and was smoking today. I was wondering, is this harmful to him other than the obvious fact that it's smoking?

Answer 1

The American Journal of Gastroenterology
Volume 99 Issue 4 Page 731 - April 2004

OBJECTIVES: We studied relationships of cigarette smoking and coffee drinking to risk of pancreatitis.

METHODS: This was a cohort study among 129,000 prepaid health plan members who supplied data about demographics and habits in 1978–85. Among 439 persons subsequently hospitalized for pancreatitis, probable etiologic associations were cholelithiasis (168/439 = 38%), alcohol (125/439 = 29%), idiopathic (110/430 = 25%), and miscellaneous (36/439 = 8%). Cox proportional hazards models with seven covariates (including alcohol intake) yielded relative risk estimates for smoking and coffee use.

RESULTS: Increasing smoking was strongly related to increased risk of alcohol-associated pancreatitis, less related to idiopathic pancreatitis, and unrelated to gallstone-associated pancreatitis. Relative risks (95% confidence intervals, CI) of one pack per day (vs never) smokers for pancreatitis groups were: alcohol = 4.9 (2.2–11.2, p< 0.001), idiopathic = 3.1 (1.4–7.2, p< 0.01), and gallstone = 1.3 (0.6–3.1). The relationship of smoking to alcohol-associated pancreatitis was consistent in sex and race subsets. Drinking coffee, but not tea, was weakly inversely related to risk only of alcohol-associated pancreatitis, with relative risk (95% CI) per cup per day = 0.85 (0.77–0.95; p= 0.003). Male sex, black ethnicity, and lower-educational attainment were other predictors of alcohol-associated pancreatitis.

CONCLUSIONS: Cigarette smoking is an independent risk factor for alcohol-associated and idiopathic pancreatitis. Coffee drinking is associated with reduced risk of alcohol-associated pancreatitis. The data are compatible with the hypotheses that smoking may be toxic to the pancreas or may potentiate other pancreatic toxins while some ingredient in coffee may have a modulating effect.

Answer 2

If you are honestly that concerned over whether the cigarettes caused the attack or not I would say just don't smoke again. Whether or not the cigarette smoking caused the pancreatitis I can't really say and a doctor probably couldn't either. But, the fact that you have quit all of your bad habits because of this health scare is very encouraging and you should keep this up. So don't smoke anymore and if it is related it won't happen again.

Answer 3

Pancreatitis is usually affected by alcohol intake and other problems. But the primary causes of many of these diseaes is the intake of nicotine and tar from smoking.
For your friend to return to his smoking habits is tantamount to playing Russian Roulette with his recovery and future health.

It is doubtful that he will take any advise that he is given, his doctors would have given clear and explicit instructions about drinking alcohol and smoking. Many people fail to listen to the advise and end up back in the medical system with yet other complaints or compunded complaints from failing to follow suggestions

Answer 4

Good Gawd...it's NOT ok to smoke...PERIOD!
Your friend is on the fasttrack to an early grave...
ya know, like in DIE, DYING, DEAD, EXPIRED.

@ crowfeathers...
Nice try but, save the dissertation...these smokers know very well the risk they take...let them kill themselves...less second-hand smoke for me to avoid.

Answer 5

No, it is not ok to smoke if you have a disease. It decreases the body's ability to heal itself.

Answer 6

smoking affects the pancreas. it may cause further damage.

Answer 7

Well it will hurt him but not his pancreas

Answer 8

No, I don't think that's advisable.

Answer 9

its his funeral

Answer 10

idk